Broken
by auzziewitch
Summary: After being saved from that which was meant to kill her, Rachel's life, opinions and beliefs are tested and broken as she attempts to recover her life from before, and discover the life she is meant to lead. COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

_I recently discovered a mild and possibly unhealthy obsession developing. Every time I walk near the local cinema, my best friend has to hold my arm (tightly) and pull me in the opposite direction. The object of this obsession is the world's favorite movie at the moment, _The Dark Knight._ In order to satisfy my obsession, I have allowed my creative mind to go to work (much to the detriment of my University studies). The result is this story, which I hope you shall enjoy._

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**Title: Broken**

**Rating: T – M for later chapters**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman or the Dark Knight characters. I'm just borrowing them to make a smoothie.**

**Summary: Rachel's life as a secure, confident and intelligent woman, lawyer and human being are damaged severely after she survives that which was meant to kill her and is forced into watching the two men she loves most falter and suffer as the world they know turns on them.**

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**Chapter One: Rescued**

She heard him yelling through the speaker and felt her heart sink. She really was going to die. She listened as he shouted at the people who were saving him; she tried to talk to him.

He was Gotham's white knight; he was the man that Bruce could never be. Every one knew his face, and knew that he was fighting crime by putting every person who harmed Gotham's society behind bars. It was right that they were saving him.

She was just an ADA; she was the woman behind him, and she wanted to always be, not just professionally. She was the woman who carried the bags, who knew all the cases, all the files, possibly better than him. Yes it was an unjust world where the man was the leader, but she loved that man, and knew that every person in Gotham loved him too, even Bruce in his strange way.

Bruce, she had no words to describe him. She knew he would be hurt when he read her note, but how could he not. He disappeared on her when he went to college, and then when he traveled the world. She was overwhelmed that day when they kissed amongst Wayne Manor's ruins, but now she was done waiting.

Yes she was possibly being unfair, but she wasn't as young as she used to be. She wanted her life to be simple and quiet, and know that her husband would come home every night. Bruce would never be that, it would never be easy being Mrs. Bruce Wayne; he had everything money could buy: fast cars, jets, a helicopter, hotels, a huge palatial house being rebuilt and a penthouse over-looking the Central Business District of the greatest city in the world.

"Rachel! Rachel!" She heard Harvey shouting her name. She couldn't think of how to respond.

As her head fell forward, waiting for the inevitable, she heard the door burst open. Looking up, she saw Gordon ahead of 6 other men racing onto the rooftop, saving her.

"No, you can't, you'll die!" She shouted at them as they raced to her and the detonator.

"And we're not about to leave and let you die either!" Gordon said to her as he cut the cords binding her hands and legs.

But as Gordon pulled her to her feet, pulled her out of the building and pulled her too safety, Rachel was utterly perplexed. Why hadn't Bruce come to save her? Didn't he care for her enough? Or as Batman, was his mind free of her? A part of her couldn't bear to think he could ever forget her.

"Br- Batman?" She asked Gordon as they raced down the stairs.

"Dent." But the way he looked at her as he responded gave her a chill down her spine.

They burst through some doors and out onto the street, and were barely out of the building when it exploded into a fireball. Feeling her knees buckle with fear, she collapsed onto the ground, a sickening feeling filling her gut.

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_I hope you enjoyed chapter one. I thrive on reviews, so please, give them._


	2. Chapter 2

_What happens when I go near the cinema without my best friend? I see a movie I promised her I wouldn't. (It's a long story why I don't want to see _The Dark Knight _again, so I won't bore you with it.) Kinda glad I did though, because it makes this chapter work a bit better. So, enough of my talk, on with the update!_

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**Chapter Two: Fear and Determination**

The back seat of the car, the heater that warmed her, could do nothing to hold back the cold. She trembled as thoughts raced through her mind, each more alarming and shocking than the last.

"Here." The door beside her opened and Gordon appeared holding a blanket which he draped around her shoulders. Unknowingly, she shrugged into the warmth, before looking up at him with a snap.

"I thought you were dead!" She whispered her eyes wide.

Gordon smiled a small smile at her. "I was; I couldn't risk my family."

She nodded her head in understanding as a younger man raced up to Gordon. "Sir, he got him out." He said breathlessly.

Gordon's expression changed; his rigidness fell. Rachel too breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good, good." Gordon replied weakly, looking at her, but leading the officer away.

She watched them retreat a few meters away, too far for her to listen in, especially as the blare of the engines and sirens of the fire department vehicles arrived. She watched them converse; Gordon, shake his head and half turn away, despite remaining in discussion. From this body language she could tell the news was bad.

She continued to watch as a second officer raced up and spoke to Gordon. This time Gordon turned and stepped away; that news was _bad_.

"He wanted me to lock him up in the MCU!" She heard him, and assumed what must have happened; The Joker must have escaped.

Watching him sprint towards the car she was in, she backed into the vehicle, thinking he was racing to the car to drive off as he shouted orders. Exactly as she predicted, he rounded the vehicle as she pulled the door closed, turned on the ignition and sped off.

After driving for a few minutes she realized he was staring at her in the rear vision mirror. His expression made her worried, before she realized what he was thinking.

"I won't go into hiding!" She spoke before he had a chance to open his mouth. Continuing to drive he merely looked at her in the mirror.

"You must! The Joker has labeled you as a victim. He wont stop attempting to kill you until you're dead!" He argued.

"And I'm not going to disappear; leaving Harvey to believe I'm dead, I can't do that. I wont run." She retorted.

At this, Gordon turned his head to look at her, hard. "You didn't see his reaction the moment he realized you were in danger." He looked back to the road. "You didn't see the way he vanished from MCU, believing he was on his way to save your life." His voice was raised, borderline shouting.

She opened her mouth to argue but stopped. He had come for her? But why wasn't he here? Why did he change his mind? She already knew how strongly he felt for her, she had seen it the night Harvey proposed; the expression on his face as he slid down the roof after her, the relief in his eyes when they landed, safe. She realized he was the only person who could protect her.

She looked back up at Gordon's reflection, matching his gaze. "I won't go into hiding; I refuse to run. But I know somewhere I can go in Gotham that is safer than anywhere else." She surprised herself at how evenly she spoke.

Gordon rolled his eyes. "Nowhere in Gotham city is safe, not anymore."

She kept her gaze on him fixed. She wasn't backing down. Bruce could protect her in a way Harvey nor the police ever could. Knowing who he was at night was the reason she would always trust him over anyone else. "Bruce Wayne." She spoke quietly, but judging from his response, she knew he had heard her.

"How does Gotham's greatest playboy and ruler of the social elite, manage to be the kind of person who will keep you safe from a mad man?" Gordon asked her through his teeth.

She glanced out the window and was amazed to find they were closing in on the MCU, at least what was left of it.

"When the Joker first labeled me a target, I went to Bruce's home. I was safe there, the only reason I left was because I watched Harvey tell the world he was Batman. I wasn't going to allow him to take the fall for being someone he wasn't. After talking to him, I planned on returning there, but I was captured instead." She looked at him. "It's the safest place in the world."

Gordon watched her as she spoke, and seeing her determined and fixed gaze, knew she was resolute. "I hope you know what you're doing." He finally spoke, as they came upon the MCU building. "But the world still needs to think you're dead."

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_Remember to Review!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Hi guys. This chapter I'm not terribly happy about, but I knew I had to get an update in. But whilst I don't like this chapter, it gets the point across of Rachel's mind-set. Hopefully, the next update will be better, and possibly not as long._

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**Chapter Three: The Reveal**

She had never felt more petrified in her life. The wig was scratching her skin; the glasses were tight against her skull and pinched at the bridge of her nose; the dress made her feel ridiculous and the make-up felt like it was sucking all the moisture from her skin. But the shoes, she would do anything to keep them.

This was what she had become. Gordon had wasted no time in making her disappear. A strategically placed explosion, a clever costume, a limousine later and she was Amanda Peterson, a socialite nobody would know or remember. All she had to do was get up the elevator to the penthouse.

She looked up at the still dark sky, wondering when the dawn would come, and for the first time in hours, feeling fatigue creep into her body.

The car came to a stop. Looking out the window she saw the building he lived in; an apartment building he owned (one of the many) and the safest place in the world. She looked back into the car before taking a deep breath, opening the door and strutting into the building, holding her breath out of nerves and feeling the frigid temperatures on her skin.

She was relieved to be inside the elevator. Pushing the button and entering the security code she collapsed, breathing heavily and shaking violently. She wondered, as the elevator began its ascent, how long it would be before she would set foot outdoors. She wondered how Harvey was; wondered where he was; wondered if she would ever see him again. But her mind returned to Gordon and what he had said about the Joker. Thinking about it caused the fatigue that had creeped into her body slip away to be replaced by a cold sense of fear.

Why did she have to be so damn afraid? She had been working in the District Attorney's office for years, working on cases featuring some of the most dangerous men in Gotham, and not once had she felt her nerves fail. Even the night she was trapped in the Narrows, holding a gun to a group of escaped Arkham inmates, she hadn't been as petrified as she was now.

She felt the speed of the elevator slow and knew she was approaching the top. Standing up, awkwardly – she took off the shoes so she could stop worrying about her ankles – she watched as the elevator doors opened before her.

This entrance hall was something she would always marvel at. Bruce had grown up in one of the oldest, grandest and most beautiful houses she had ever seen. Everything about it was heritage – the doors, the floors, the gardens. But this, it was so different to who he was, but so right to the persona of Bruce Wayne.

Being in his presence, surrounded by other people, she was always astounded at the person he became. He was nothing like the boy she grew up with, nor the man she knew he was. He was arrogant, blasé, ignorant and aloof to the world around him. And it didn't help that he was always, _always _surrounded by the most beautiful of women, none of whom he was remotely interested in.

He was an actor, and a brilliant one at that. Shortly after seeing him after he returned from his absence she chastised him for being the stereotypical rich boy, and seeing him on the news and in the tabloids didn't alter that perception. It wasn't until that day at Wayne Manor, knowing who he really was and seeing his plans that she realized he was still the person she fell in love with as a girl.

It was that knowledge, which always allowed her to laugh at the papers when "the future Mrs. Wayne" was the head article. It was that knowledge which had her defend him when Harvey mocked her for being good friends with him. It was that knowledge that had her standing meters away from him, biting her lip and swallowing tears as she heard the sorrow and grief in his voice.

Neither Bruce nor Alfred had noticed her enter, but the moment she opened her mouth and allowed the faintest of noises to come out, they both spun around to face her.

"You're dead." His voice was quieter than a whisper as he stares at her, unable to speak, unable to move.

She glances at Alfred, seeing him pick up the letter she wrote, pocketing it. He smiles at her and moves to leave.

"Glad to see you're alright, Miss Dawes." He speaks to her as he passes, taking the shoes and the glasses from her, before continuing out.

She looks back to Bruce; he is still frozen before her, staring at her. She trembles under his gaze. "Gordon arrived; got me out just in time." She whispered, needing to say something to end this silence.

Suddenly he rushes to her, pulling her tight, holding her, kissing her. He pulls away and hugs her. She trembles in his grasp, seeing suddenly the full extent of his affection for her. He doesn't have to say it, she can feel it and it causes her eyes to water.

"It wasn't you." The words are out of her mouth before she has a chance to think.

He pulls away slightly and stares at her. She bites her lip but can't look at him. She can only imagine what she has just done to his mind. She looks up at him as her mind goes clear.

"The moment I opened my eyes and saw where I was, surrounded by oil tanks and a bomb in front of me, I knew you were coming for me. I remembered being told by one of the Joker's men that they were going to make you choose, and I knew you were coming for me. But I didn't want you too; I didn't want you to put me above the future of Gotham. But then I heard Harvey being saved and my heart sank.

"I was going to die; you weren't there. And just as I came to face that, Gordon appeared in the doorway. I was being saved. But it didn't feel right because you weren't there." Throughout her speech he watched her, his face unchanging. But only now did she see it shift.

"I thought it was you." He spoke suddenly, interrupting her and making her stop. "The Joker told me where you and Harvey where. I thought I was coming to you." He watched her as she looked away, knowing she didn't know how to respond.

"How is he?" The silence that had fallen extended for longer than either of them even knew; both could feel the sun's early warm rays on their bodies.

Bruce pulled away from her, walked to the bed and sat down, inviting her to do the same. "He's not good."

The way he spoke, his back to her, his voice low, she knew she had found a way to offend him. But she couldn't help it. Only a few hours ago she was going to marry Harvey; it was only natural that she wanted to know what was happening.

"How bad?" Bruce looked at her sharply; he knew the tone of voice, knew she was upset. "Gordon wouldn't tell me anything."

Bruce sighed as she finally accepted his invitation, sitting down beside him. "I got him out, but he was covered in oil – a he had fallen over in the chair. When the Joker's bomb went off, some of the explosion caught him; half his body was on fire. It took a while for me to extinguish it – I thought he was dead." Rachel listened to him, silent tears beginning to fall. "Half his body is burnt beyond anything the medics have ever seen. He'll need extensive skin grafts and counseling before he's healed properly."

Rachel looked away, swallowing heavily. The floor was the only thing she could look at. She didn't even notice Bruce watch her; didn't notice the sun continue to rise. She didn't notice anything until she found herself lying on her side, beneath the many sheets and blankets.

"Bruce?" She asked the empty space, before seeing him appear before her from the bathroom, no longer in his suit, but now in a t-shirt and shorts. "Will you hold me?" She stared at him, hoping he would see her need. Feeling the mattress beneath and the sheets and blankets above her, fatigue had crept in. But with the image of Harvey strong in her mind, she refused to sleep with nightmares about him, and for some reason, she knew Bruce would be able to keep them away.

He smiled weakly, flicking a switch that closed all the curtains, and in the darkness joined her in the bed, wrapping his arms around her, and watched as she fell soundly asleep.

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_As always, Remember to Review!_


	4. Chapter 4

_Hi guy's, sorry about the delay, I've been a little caught up with uni, work, and the ability to give this chapter an ending. For some reason, the final few sentences haven't been working, but now they have, so I can update!_

_I hope you all enjoy!_

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**Chapter Four: The Nightmare begins**

Rachel awoke feeling refreshed but by no means calmer. Her dreams had been constantly interrupted by images of Harvey, each one different. She couldn't begin to imagine what he looked like. Initially, his appearances had been just half his face inflamed, but each subsequent time he became worse until she was imagining a skeleton walking around with skin and muscle hanging from each bone.

Sitting up in the bed she found the room empty. Feeling the chill, she saw a bathrobe hanging over one of the chairs. Getting up, she shrugged into it, surprised at how coarse it was.

The last image she'd had of Harvey returned to her mind. The thought brought a chill to her bones, causing her to sit down.

"Ah, glad to see you're awake, Miss Dawes." Looking up, she saw Alfred enter the room, a tray in his hands.

She looked up at him and smiled lightly. "Where's Bruce?" She asked as Alfred placed the tray down beside her.

"Downstairs, working on some paperwork for Wayne Enterprises." Alfred responded.

Rachel nodded; a little surprised Bruce Wayne actually paid attention to Wayne Enterprises business. Reaching over to the tray Alfred placed beside her she, Rachel attempted to eat a slice of the fruit, but found the image of Harvey too much.

"Are you alright Miss Dawes?" Alfred was looking at her oddly. "You look pale."

Rachel looked at him sadly. "Its just, Bruce told me what happened to Harvey, and ever since, my mind's been unable to stop thinking about what he must look like."

Alfred, in response, walked over to her and sat down on the bed beside her. "I can imagine you see him as a horrific figure; someone barely human." He spoke quietly, whilst she stared at the tray.

"I don't know what I see. It's an ever changing image. I can't think of him as anything other than the Harvey Dent I know." She replied sadly.

"Given the circumstances, no matter what happens, I think he would prefer all those whom he loves, and all those who love him, to remember him as the person he is. Don't try and think about what he looks like now, just remember what he looked like when you last saw him." Alfred responded.

Wisdom of age; it was something Rachel always hated because it was so simple and easy to do. She looked up at Alfred, who now had a small smile on his face, and returned it weakly. "The last time I saw him he was being put in a van, taking the blame for Bruce." She looked away from him, speaking sadly. "I don't want that to be the last memory I have of him."

Alfred's smile grew to resemble amusement. "Ah, but that's the key. He wasn't taking the blame; he was being incredibly bold in telling Bruce something that I couldn't; that Batman is a lot more than a man in a mask." He smiled at her, standing and moving to leave the room.

Rachel followed him go, thinking about what he said, and forced to concede that he was right. Without Bruce, without Batman, Harvey would definitely be dead. "Alfred." She spoke just as he reached the doorway. "Thank you."

He turned to look at her, and smiled. "You're welcome Miss Dawes."

He left her in piece, and after several moments, Rachel found the ability to reach for the food on the tray. Before she could control it, she was attacking the food with a fury.

"Hungry?" She jumped, looking up to see Bruce in the doorway, a small amused smile on his face.

Swallowing the mouthful, she was able to speak. "The last time I ate was yesterday before I left." She replied.

Bruce walked into the room and took a seat beside her on the bed, taking one of the last grapes. "Still tired? You didn't appear to sleep well."

"I couldn't shake the image of what Harvey must now look like. Every image just seemed to get worse." She responded sadly.

She looked at him sadly, allowing him to kiss her lightly and wrap an arm around her shoulders pulling her close to him. "What he looks like, is what he looked like the last time you saw him." He said quietly.

Rachel looked up at him, her eyes slightly wider than normal. "What?" He asked her slightly perplexed at her reaction.

"That's what Alfred told me." She whispered.

Bruce smiled. But before he had a chance to respond Alfred spoke from the doorway; "Sir, you need to see this." He strode into the room, turned on the TV and flicked to the necessary channel where Coleman Reese was shown, and the newsreader offering the exclusive story of the real batman.

Rachel felt Bruce tighten beside her as he watched. The three of them watched the screen in silence as the news anchor questioned Reese, and received telephone questions from Gotham citizens. Bruce stood up and was about to turn off the TV when the Joker's raspy voice sounded through the sound system.

Rachel stared at the television, listening to the Joker's threat. She missed Bruce going even more rigid; missed Alfred pale. When the screen went black her eyes darted to Bruce who was halfway out the door. She missed most of what he was saying, catching the last part referring to police relatives in hospitals.

"Will you be taking the Batpod, Sir?" Alfred asked calmly.

Rachel stared at Alfred utterly perplexed. The Joker had just threatened to blow up a hospital unless someone killed Coleman Reese within an hour. It was utterly bemusing how he could joke about such a thing as which vehicle Bruce would be taking.

"Middle of the day Alfred? Not very subtle." Bruce responded calmly from the doorway.

"The Lamborghini then." Alfred said simply, turning away before muttering incoherently.

Despite being utterly perplexed at how they conversed between one another, Rachel recognized the banter, and realized it was simply how Bruce and Alfred conversed. Shaking her head, and realizing that Bruce was leaving, she rushed out of the room, catching him just as he was getting in the elevator. But opening her mouth to speak she had no idea what she was going to say.

"Go with Alfred." He instructed. "You'll be a lot safer with him at the bunker than here on your own." He pressed the button that closed the door.

She watched as the shiny doors closed before her. In the reflection she saw Alfred standing behind her. "What's he doing? Where's he going?" She asked, slightly confused at what was going on.

Alfred stepped up to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Batman can not appear during the day, we both know that. The only way he can is for Bruce Wayne to _be _Bruce Wayne."

Rachel was confused. Alfred could see her confusion and chuckled. "Expect him to return with minor bruises and probably a highly damaged car."

Rachel continued to look confused, but Alfred continued to smile at her, leading her into the now empty elevator. "Bruce Wayne in public is someone we both admit we hardly know. He'll be rescuing people without them even knowing they're being rexcued."

Rachel was still confused, but found herself understanding what he meant. As the elevator doors closed, and the elevator began its descent, she found herself understanding what Alfred meant. However she couldn't shake the feeling that this day was going to end a lot worse than it began.

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_Remember to Review!_


	5. Chapter 5

_What? No review's on my last chapter? I'm insulted! Please excuse me whilst I kick and scream about it……………………………………………………………...…..now that I'm over that, here's the next update._

_Note: I really have no idea about police ranks in the US, so I've given them names of ranks you can find here in the little land of Oz._

_Enjoy! (And remember to review!)_

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**Chapter Five: 1984**

The journey to the bunker had been surprisingly quiet. Other than the obvious thoughts of death and destruction that the Joker naturally created, Rachel had nothing to occupy her mind. Having taken both Bruce and Alfred's advice, she had found any flash images of Harvey were of the man she had only ever seen. What Bruce saw, what Harvey looked like now, she didn't want to think about.

Pulling into the seeming abandoned lot, Rachel marveled at how freely Alfred displayed himself. Batman's 'lair' was a meter away from them, and yet Alfred still fumbled with his keys without any outward show of fear. Finally he found the key he was looking for, and after unlocking and opening the container door, stood aside and allowed her to enter.

After he closed the door, allowing darkness to envelop them, she felt a coldness run down her spine and cover her; a coldness that she realized had been missing during her few hours in the 'protection' of Bruce Wayne.

"It's warmer below." Alfred spoke beside her as the floor shuddered, and began its descent to the floor.

"No, it's not the temperature that's the problem." Rachel sighed weakly in response.

She couldn't see Alfred's reaction, but as the floor continued its gentle floor, as the lights of the bunker came on, Rachel only saw a man with a stern expression on his face.

Even before the floor came to a complete stop, Alfred was away, heading for the computers across the room. Looking around, Rachel was surprised to see how empty the place was.

"In preparation for Master Wayne's surrender to the police, everything was placed into secure protection or destroyed. I don't know how I'm going to be able to do this job without some of those files." Alfred muttered ahead of her as he turned on the computers and picked up a telephone head-set.

"Bruce was going to turn himself in?" Rachel had stopped moving and was staring at Alfred. This could not be true! She had stood in his lounge room staring at the television as Harvey announced to the world that he was Batman, whilst Bruce stood by and watched. Her proof on the selfish being that was Bruce Wayne had been proven in a few minutes, and had caused her to make the decision she had been avoiding since she first felt a warmth in her heart that for so long had been felt only for Bruce.

Alfred turned around and stared at her. "I have been surrounded by powerful, wealthy, brilliant and good men all my life; especially since Thomas Wayne hired me as his butler. For many years, I thought my late master to be the best of them, but the one I have now, is so much more.

"When he told me he had no choice but to turn himself in to the police, to save the lives of Gotham's citizens, I knew that no matter how much I tried to convince him to do otherwise, he would surrender." Alfred spoke as Rachel slowly crossed the room to him. "What Harvey did in is actions, was saying the same point I had been trying to make to him, only more effective."

Rachel smiled weakly. "You said that this morning."

Alfred's answering smile was broader; "I've found in my old age that I am repeating myself a lot more than I used to."

As he finished speaking he reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope that made Rachel's insides squirm. "He hasn't seen this yet, but I think, given the current circumstances, it would be better if you gave it to him yourself."

Rachel took the envelope and stared at it, sitting down as she did so. "I wrote this in anger, not realizing the circumstances properly. But how do I tell him that by not knowing the circumstances properly I freed myself?"

Alfred sighed, and rested a hand on her shoulder. "You be honest."

Rachel didn't have a chance to counter him. As she opened her mouth the phone rang and Bruce's voice sounded.

"I imagine sir, that you would like me to cross-reference all members of the Gotham Police Department with patients of all hospitals?" Alfred asked, typing something into the computers.

"Yes, but particularly any officers near the GCN building, and involved in getting Reese out." Bruce's voice sounded through the speaker.

Rachel felt a lump in her throat form hearing his voice, and knowing the discussion they were going to have to have before time extended too much longer.

As Alfred – and surprisingly quickly – pulled up a list of Police officers with family members in hospitals, Rachel found herself drifting off. Her mind filled itself with scenarios of how she would tell Bruce about the letter. In some of them he was furious, and would call her a slut, whilst in others he would burst into tears, and then she would find herself holding him like she did when they were children and he was still mourning his parents.

"Rachel?" Alfred's voice filtered through her imagination, catching her attention and wiping the image of an adult/child Bruce Wayne from her mind. "We need your help."

Rachel nodded standing and moving closer to him. "Sure; what can I do?"

"Rachel, Gordon and a small team of officers have got Reese out of the GCN building, but I can only make out a few of them. Given you spend just as much of your career time surrounded by police as with criminals, you will probably know who they are." Bruce's voice spoke. Given the background noise she could tell he was driving.

"How am I supposed to know who they are if I can't see them?" Rachel asked; but almost on cue, the screens above flashed on, and showing surprisingly good quality picture of the GCN building; its many corridors, offices, elevators, foyers, main exits, etc. "Bruce, remind me to force you to read _1984_." She said in reaction to seeing so much of the GCN building illegally before her.

Through the earpiece that Alfred had now given her, she heard Bruce chuckle.

"How do I zoom in?" Rachel asked Alfred.

"I do." Alfred responded, but in a tone that indicated she would one day come across the users guide to Batman's technologies, but for the time being he used the computer.

"Which officers are the ones you're having trouble identifying?" Rachel asked Bruce.

"There were three; if you look at the side alley camera, the officer who climbs into the police van straight after Reese." As he spoke Alfred typed quickly, and pulling the footage up onto one main computer. "There are two officers leading Reese, one of them is Moroney, but I'm not sure who the other one is. And the third is the driver of the van."

"How am I supposed to identify the driver through all the shielding those vans have?" Rachel retorted. Again, on cue, Rachel was staring at the van driver as though there was nothing separating them.

"Bruce I'm going to save my disgust for how you have access to the city for another day. For now, though, the driver is Smythe." Rachel said, turning her attention to the next screen.

"Senior Officer Phillip Smythe, no family in Gotham hospitals." Alfred spoke.

"I think the second officer leading Reese is Senior Constable Isaacs." Rachel went on, looking at the same screen for a few more minutes.

"You think, or you know?" Bruce's voice spoke.

"Senior Constable Richard Isaacs has an aunt in the South Gotham Community hospital." Alfred spoke.

"If the Joker's going to blow up any hospital, it's going to be Gotham General." Bruce responded.

"What makes you so sure?" Rachel asked, staring at the footage of the third unknown officer, jumping into the police van after Reese.

"Gotham General is the biggest hospital in the city; and it's the hospital where…" he trailed off.

"The hospital where…? Bruce if you're going to make a statement, make it. Don't trail off halfway through." Rachel spoke, not seeing any familiarity in the officer.

Bruce sighed, heavily. "Harvey is in Gotham General. He's in the intensive care ward with highly problematic injuries, and going to be one of the most difficult patients to move and evacuate." Bruce spoke slowly, and for the first time in years, Rachel heard remorse in his voice.

As the weight of his words hit her, she found herself sitting back in the chair, a heavy lump in her throat. "The Joker will blow up a hospital if Reese survives the next 20 minutes." Rachel whispered.

"No Rachel. This is the Joker we're talking about. Last night he proved how reckless he is. Blowing up a hospital will be too much fun. Who's to say if someone does succeed in killing Reese, that Gotham Gen won't fall to the ground anyway?" Bruce was surprisingly strong through the phone line.

Rachel had no response. From the chair, she looked back up at the screen, before realizing who the officer was. "The third guy is a patrol officer, Berg or Borg." Rachel sighed, taking the headset off and leaving it on the bench, standing and walking away.

"Patrol Officer Peter Berg; his wife is in Gotham General." Alfred spoke gravely.

"Send the information to Gordon." Came Bruce's reply.

From both men's reactions, Rachel knew that this was a man who could likely make Gordon's attempts at saving a Gotham citizen futile.

She watched Alfred, as he placed the headset down, walking over and standing beside her. "It's all up to him now." He said quietly.

"How will Bruce be able to protect Coleman Reese from someone in the same vehicle? And why was Bruce so afraid of him? Reese is an accountant with, if anything I see to go by, very little intelligence or wisdom." As she spoke, she looked to Alfred and saw the grave expression. "What does Reese know?" She asked, suddenly afraid of the answer.

Alfred heaved a sigh, and stared at her with a steely expression that kept a fear and dread firmly in her belly.

_-xXx-_

_Remember to Review!_


	6. Chapter 6

_Yay! Reviews! I'm glad to see I still have people interested in my story. I have nothing further to add, so on with this update!_

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**Chapter Six – Watching from a distance**

"Alfred, tell me." Rachel feared she already knew the answer just by the extent of Alfred's silence. "What does Reese know?"

Alfred sighed. "Bruce Wayne's driving skills may not be brilliant, but he does have specific skills that do somehow enable him to succeed in this situation." He finally spoke, but he infuriated Rachel by answering a question she no longer cared about.

"That was not the answer to the question I asked." She spoke hotly, feeling the lawyer in her coming out. "What does Reese know about Bruce?" She felt like she was demanding; pulling teeth or getting candy from a small child.

Alfred stared at her, and after a few moments, he relented. "For the past few months, Coleman Reese has been working within Wayne Enterprises. He has been privy to many of the goings on in the boardroom, and disappointed that Bruce Wayne's time spent there was solely for catching up on sleep." Rachel felt like she was about to scream, this wasn't an answer. But seeing the pause Alfred made told her that what she wanted to know, she was about too.

"Lucius Fox, knowing Reese's distaste for his employer, attempted to keep him out of the way. He noticed Reese had a taste for curiosity, and wanting to avoid awkward questions, kept him re-analyzing numbers. Unfortunately, Reese found some problems with Fox's numbers. Being the smart man that he was, he started digging, and found evidence that Wayne Enterprises, specifically Bruce Wayne and Batman co-exist." He explained.

Rachel stared at Alfred stunned that such a thing could happen. Surely both Lucius Fox and Bruce had enough intelligence to be able to – illegal as it is – doctor the numbers so this could not happen.

"To tell you the truth;" Alfred went on; "I don't think Bruce Wayne would be as strong in his current actions if there wasn't the possibility that he could protect his own skin." Rachel looked up at Alfred sharply.

"So Bruce really is the selfish being I think he is." She snapped.

"Indeed." She was surprised when Alfred's voice was in agreement with her own. "But no more selfish than anyone else who's life as a vigilante is threatened to be revealed without their control. I'm sure that if someone found out who Superman was when he wasn't saving the world, Clarke Kent would become a little bit nervous."

Rachel sighed. "Superman isn't a vigilante; he always shows his face and when he's offered help, he takes it."

Alfred nodded in agreement, and knowing that their use in the bunker was no longer necessary, led her out.

"Although I still hate it when your logic's right." She spoke as the floor began to rise, earning a chuckle from Alfred.

"What did Reese find?" She asked once the light of the bunker was only covering their feet.

"Blueprints for Batman's vehicles, with Lucius' name on them; a lot of money going missing; a department of Wayne Enterprises that was shut down a year ago but which still had a revenue stream. Reese wasn't just blackmailing Bruce Wayne; he was blackmailing Fox and the company too."

Rachel sighed. It wasn't until they were back in the open air that she spoke again. "What I don't understand;" she asked walking around the car to the passenger door; "is why this is a problem now. Surely, and with such evidence, Reese would have gone public sooner?"

Alfred paused in opening the drivers' door, and looking over the car roof, answered after several beats. "Lucius thought he had ended the problem by making Reese's claim appear illogical and ridiculous; obviously, Reese is driven to reveal his knowledge by something that is no longer money."

Their conversation was interrupted when a loud bang sounded, echoing across the city, off the river, the metal of the construction yard. Both Rachel and Alfred turned in the vague direction the explosion of sound came from, and both gasped when they saw a great cloud of black smoke billowing up into the sky.

Rachel covered her mouth as both realized that Gotham General had just been raised; she felt tears explode into her eyes as the possibility that Harvey was actually dead reared its ugly self in her mind.

"I thought you said Bruce was going to prevent this!" She screamed at Alfred, feeling him attempt to get her into the car, or comfort her; she wasn't sure.

"No; no-one was going to prevent that hospital from falling, Reese being killed or not." Alfred responded darkly.

She allowed him to force her into the car as her eyes filled with tears.

_-xXx-_

Back at the penthouse, Rachel was lying on the bed, her eyes slowly releasing tears. She wasn't sure how she was supposed to act now.

Yes, she was incredibly distressed at the possibility that Harvey was dead, but in 24 hours, she found she had come to some minor understanding about the Joker, and knowing that Gotham General had been destroyed, she wasn't overly surprised.

In the background the television was blaring about the chaos Gotham had come into after the hospital was destroyed. She had vaguely heard a report that one bus of evacuees was missing; that the police were calling in the National Guard to assist with the overgrown turmoil.

She had a vague image of what it would be like on the streets; just like it had been a year ago when Crane was releasing his toxin and people were coming to destroy the city. She imagined that the only difference from that time to what was happening now was the time of day.

"Miss Dawes?" She didn't move upon hearing Alfred's voice in the doorway. "Bruce would like to speak to you."

She sat up and looked Alfred who was holding a telephone. Knowing that if she didn't like what he had to say, she could just hang up, Rachel nodded, taking the phone as Alfred gave it to her.

She didn't know how to begin this conversation nor what he wanted to talk to her about.

"Bruce." Her voice was cold, formal and strangely alien; she couldn't remember a time when she had ever spoken to him like that. Maybe it was because this was a telephone conversation and other times she'd been displeased with him was in person.

"How are you?" She had no idea what was going on. Surely he didn't want to have a casual conversation with her.

"Fine." She knew it was a lie, but she didn't care; he wouldn't know.

"Come on Rachel. Don't lie to me. You're a mess right now and possibly incredibly confused." She felt her eyes go wide as he spoke.

"You either have been talking to Alfred about me, or there's a camera in your room; both actually wouldn't surprise me." She responded. Her voice was back to normal; no longer that odd sound or tone.

She heard Bruce laugh down the line. "Listen; given the problems going on at the moment, I don't think I'm going to be back until late. Do you think you'll be okay until then?" She heard genuine concern in his voice and found herself hating it.

It was the sound of a man who's emotions were conflicted between two things he loved more than anything. In Bruce's case, she knew how much he loved her, no matter how hard he attempted to show her that he was okay with her life away from him, having him question her about what she said a year ago had reminded her of it. But she also knew how much he loved Batman.

When they had been teenagers, the only time she had seen Bruce come alive was when he was forced into a position where his parent's deaths were not in the foreground of his mind. For her 19th birthday they both went skydiving, and although they were both strapped to a highly trained instructor, when they had landed, she had seen the thrill in his eyes.

Bruce loved adrenaline; it was what kept him going. She knew he loved the feeling of it pumping through his veins as he soared over Gotham, protecting the innocent and defeating the criminals.

Realizing she'd been silent for a while, Rachel finally spoke. "I'll be here with Alfred, I should be okay." She knew he couldn't see her, but she smiled as she finished speaking, more to reinforce it to herself. She had a strange feeling that the longer she was separated from him, the more panicky she would feel.

"Okay, good. I'll see you later." She knew he wanted to end the conversation, but for some reason, she didn't want it too.

"Bruce, what are you going to do?" She asked quickly, hoping he heard her and wouldn't hang up.

She heard him sigh before he spoke. "I'm going to end this." His voice was final, and followed by a dial-tone.

"Be safe." Rachel spoke to the phone as she turned it off and flicked it to the end of the bed.

Finding some courage, she stepped away from the bed and over to the window, looking down at the city below, and realizing, that no matter how hard she tried to imagine, there was no way she could comprehend what it was really like.

_-xXx-_

_Remember to review!_


	7. Chapter 7

_Normally I would say something right now to imply happiness at the number of reviews, or my experience with writing this chapter, but I cant think of anything right now, which is probably also because I just woke up._

_So after that tangent, on with the update!_

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**Chapter Seven – A bad dream unfolding**

It was like a bad dream; but one she was merely the observer of. The television refused to let up. It was like a Pandora's Box had been opened on the city, and yet she wasn't a part of it.

She would occasionally stare at Alfred, wondering how he wasn't being affected by the reports the news channel continued to show. She found it a little disconcerting that he never once appeared to prick his ears to the stories. But then again, he was the personal butler to Batman.

But the observations of terror no matter how dreadful could not compare in any way to the dread she had been feeling in her stomach since one newly installed police commissioner stopped by to visit her that afternoon.

_Flashback_

She didn't know why he bothered. Since they had returned from the bunker he had been endless in his attempts to feed her something. Once again, he was leaving the room with a still full tray, muttering something incoherent under his breath as he did.

Feeling for the first time, a smile form on her face, it quickly fell when she looked back out to the city, thinking how everything must be going.

"Alfred, I'm not hungry! Stop attempting to force feed me!" She said in jest, hearing footsteps approach her.

"I'm sorry, Rachel, it's not Alfred." Hearing the always surprising soft voice of Jim Gordon behind her, made Rachel whip around at such a rate she was surprised she didn't get whip-lash.

"What are you doing here?" She couldn't help stare at him.

He had a usual bleak expression on his face; he looked like he hadn't slept in weeks; he was averting eye-contact and looking around the room, and to make matters worse, the way he was ringing his hands together implied that the news he was going to tell her was bad.

"I have two things to tell you, although the first you probably already know." He finally spoke, but when he looked at her, he wasn't looking at her face.

Rachel swallowed, feeling herself sit down.

"Bruce Wayne was in a car accident. He's alright, possibly a little shaken, but he's ok." Rachel felt a small spark of anger flare. What was the use of Jim Gordon coming here to tell her something that the news had been covering almost non-stop?

"Whether he will admit to it or not, I am certain that the only reason he was in an accident was to protect the police van myself and Coleman Reese were in, from a truck driver intent on joining the Joker's world of fear and craziness." He went on.

Rachel looked away; given she knew about Reese's certain threat on Bruce's safety she knew that his participation in this accident was for one purpose only.

"It made me see that you coming here _was _the right thing to do." Rachel looked up at Gordon quickly. "It's funny how some things remind you that people who are born good, rarely change."

"You said there were two things you needed to tell me." Rachel responded. She couldn't allow herself to dwell on Gordon's statements for too long; they would driver her mad, and she would much rather go mad in private.

Gordon looked a little taken aback at her abrupt and swift change in topic, but being reminded of something that she could feel was worse, he dropped his head and looked away.

"Harvey's missing." He spoke after a silence that seemed endless.

"What?" Rachel was surprised a sound came from her lips.

Gordon looked up at her before he continued speaking. "When the Joker made his threat, I knew he would target Gotham General; it's the biggest and possibly the best hospital in the city, and also, there was one patient he had already targeted."

"Harvey." Rachel stood up and walked to the windows, finding a new meaning in her searching of the streets below.

"Yes." Gordon sighed in response. "When the evacuation notice came, busses from every major company across the city came, possibly hundreds of them. Except one of them is now missing. And to make matter's worse, we don't have any way of knowing whether or not we got Harvey out alive, and onto that missing bus, or if he got out of the hospital himself, or if…." He trailed off and Rachel felt tears spring to her eyes.

"You don't know if he died in the explosion, or if he survived it." She finished his sentence, swallowing the sobs but breaking down silently.

"I'm sorry Rachel; I know how distressing this must be for you. But I wanted to keep you informed." Through her tears she nodded her head, glad but horror struck at Gordon's conscience.

"If anything comes up, I'll let you know." She couldn't muster the courage to nod; instead she felt her hands grab at her face stronger, as the tears became more pronounced.

Through the echo of her sobs, she heard Gordon leave; knew he would be raked with guilt for leaving her in such a situation.

_End Flashback_

Though the tears had ended, the fear hadn't let up. She didn't know what to believe. She found it difficult to believe that Harvey could have survived, with no-one to see him leave the hospital, but at the same time, she refused to believe he was dead. And with that thought, she couldn't help but wonder why he hadn't contacted anyone to tell them he was alright.

"…and we've just been informed that the body of Salvatore Maroni, the accused but acquitted leader of Gotham's Crime family has just been identified." Rachel stared at the TV, and noticed Alfred – finally – perk up.

"We've been informed that he was killed when the car he was traveling in rolled alongside the bay freight line, a short distance from the Gotham Business district." Rachel stared at the television, wondering how in the world this man had finally been stopped, despite it being against society's norms.

She flicked channels when the reporter went on to the next story, looking to see if any others were running the death of Sal Maroni.

"…what is most concerning about this news, is reports from passers by that someone matching Harvey Dent's description, was seen leaving the vehicle shortly after the accident." Another channel was; but hearing the newsreader say Harvey's name in relation to this accident made her sick.

She could not believe – she refused to believe – that Harvey would go out and kill someone like Maroni. She knew how he valued justice and could not, not for one second, believe that he would drop all of his beliefs, values and morals and kill someone.

"It's not true." She whispered seeing the TV go black before her. "There is no way he would do such a thing."

Alfred stepped into her line of vision and watched her. "Trust me, Miss Dawes; I'm as shocked as you are."

He continued to stare at her whilst her mind reeled, flashing moments before her eyes that did everything to prove the news report wrong. Harvey Dent was a good man, no, a great man. Even as a penalty he resented death, knowing that a criminal didn't learn anything from it.

As the memories continued to flash, proof of his innocence, her stomach lurched in disgust that anyone could slander Harvey's name in such a way. Rushing to the bathroom, she found herself despising the world over 100 floors below; how they could possibly imply that one of the best people in Gotham was no longer a character to be trusted.

_-xXx-_

_Remember to Review!_

_Author's Note: Does anyone even read these little notes I put in, both before and after? Ah well, whether you read them or not, I'll still continue to include them. Possibly an indication of my personality – have I mentioned I just woke up?_


	8. Chapter 8

_I did a little bit of re-reading of what I've done so far, and I realized that I've been leaning a little bit too heavily on the Bruce/Rachel relationship. Sure that's where this is going, but I needed to get back to Rachel's understandable confusion over Bruce or Harvey, especially given what happened in the last chapter._

_However, upon reading this, I'm not sure I've got it completely right, which is part of the reason for the flashback scene at the end of this chapter (which is slightly longer than I would have liked)._

_Still, I hope you all still like it._

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Eight – Confusion**

It seemed to be something that kept her going; an action that she had become obsessed with doing; something that she couldn't stray away from. The window had become her refuge, the only location where her mind was able to find some clarity, no matter how many times it clouded itself with uncertainty.

It was also the only place where she felt safe. For some reason, looking down at the world below, the possibility of seeing Bruce appear kept her calm. But even that thought confused her.

She had absolutely no idea what was going on. Only a day ago, or had it been a week – her concept of time had been shot the moment she walked through the front door of Bruce's building.

She loved Harvey, in fact that was wrong, she was crazy about him. He always made her smile with his wit and intelligence, and he always kept her guessing. He was the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, at least, the man she _had _wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

Since the news had run the story that Harvey Dent may have been the man who killed Salvatore Maroni, her every opinion of him had been tested. Yes definitely, she refused to believe he was capable of such a thing, and instantly found fault with any possibility he was to blame.

Sure she'd seen him be physical towards others, in fact she thought he was quite capable of it – "boxing keep's my anger with this city at bay, and teaches me how to defend myself in a dark alley" he had said to her once. She had thought he was strong, tough, thought that if he were caught in that dark alley he would always be the victor.

But then she had seen just how easily Bruce had him beaten – despite coming at him from behind. It was strange, Rachel had known Bruce for most of his life, and yet never once thought that he was going to be a physically strong person. Well, that was a lie. During his teenage years she'd watched him work out until he was spent, seen blood drip from his knuckles.

Watching him punish himself so physically she had never believed would lead to anything. He went off to college and she only heard stories from Alfred about what he was getting up too; that he was bored and hated his peers who only paid attention to him because of his name. When she would see him, when he would visit Gotham on his whirlwind visits, he was always covered from head to toe. She never had that opportunity to see him flesh and bone.

Seeing him in a suit all the time nowadays – be it business or Batman – she realised she had spent too long ignoring that strength he so evidently had; thinking of him as being weak. It didn't help that he'd spent years after his parents death grieving them, unable to ever move on.

Her dad died when she was five – it was part of the reason why her mom took the housekeeping job at Wayne Manor – but she was able to move on quickly. She had never understood why he had been so different.

And then he disappeared for seven years, and for the first one or two of them, she was certain it was because of what she had said to him. In fact, even after he returned, when she never heard from him, she thought it was because he hated her.

And then she saw him; two beautiful girls under each arm, all three of them soaking wet in dinner-wear from designers with Italian names but who spent most of their time in the US.

It was like, for seven years, she had held this naïve belief that he would return the exact same person; ignorant, far too wealthy, bored and reckless. But instead he returned as someone who acted like any spoilt and over-indulged trust fund baby. She was disgusted!

Here was this man who had been so intelligent he had finished high school with a GPA the same as hers, but who hardly studied! He was offered places at Yale, Dartmouth and Brown, but chose Princeton because it was the farthest. A man who had talked of becoming an attorney or a politician; doing something to help the people of Gotham like his father.

But instead, he was _swimming _and drinking, and going to waste.

How wrong she was.

Finding out he was Batman was like a slap in the face. She found it mind boggling that he could be so blank and incompetent, and yet still be that hugely intelligent, charming and warm person he had been.

Even today, a year after finding out the truth, being with him whilst he was being sceptical about Batman whilst those around him praised the man they called 'the Caped Crusader' she found it difficult to focus.

She had sat at dinner under the biggest of pressures; Bruce at one end and Harvey at the other, and forced to concentrate on the line of conversation whilst her mind whirred. She had Bruce being Bruce Wayne, a man she found incredibly difficult to understand, and Harvey being himself.

That was the difference between the two of them, these two brilliant men. Harvey never acted like anyone else; he was always himself. He would always say what he was thinking, and not care who objected to it. Maybe it was because he was a lawyer. But Bruce, well, there were two Bruce's; the one in the spotlight and the one in the darkness; and it was the silent, largely unknown Bruce Wayne that she loved.

Maybe that was her biggest problem, loving a man whom everyone she knew thought to be a useless, over-indulged, ignorant, billionaire playboy. When she first told Harvey that she and Bruce Wayne had grown up together; that she considered him to be one of her best friends, he spat his coffee out.

"You grew up with Bruce Wayne? One of the biggest proofs that men like Derek Zoolander really do exist?" He had asked her, wiping his mouth, and spluttering.

She hadn't been able to defend him, because after all, he was right. The Bruce Wayne the public saw was nothing like the man she had loved since she was old enough to understand what love was. Instead she had told him stories, and by the end of the evening, Harvey had come to see Bruce in a much nicer view; but she still knew he was laughing at her.

That was possibly the one thing that she hated about Harvey; that he held the perception that people like Bruce Wayne were mindless, ignorant hypocrites, unimpressed with the lower ends of society but unwilling to do anything about it.

She used to hate those conversations they would get into.

_-Flashback-_

"Why don't you ask your friend Bruce to donate some pocket change to a good cause, rather than buying every restaurant in this damn city?" Harvey asked her as they were on their way home from dinner.

Rachel stared at him. "Bruce is helping this city. He could be off in some unknown corner of the world, not having a care in the world about Gotham's problems?" She retorted, always hating these conversations.

"Bullshit. What help is he doing? Dating Natasha what's-her-name and what's-her-job? Model? Actress?" He spat.

"She's the Prima Ballerina of the Moscow Ballet. You know, the show you're taking me too next week?" She countered.

"Whatever. Throwing me a fundraiser is useless. Why did I agree to it? Oh yeah, because it means _I'll never have to have another set_." He said, imitating Bruce. "It's not going to do anything to save or help this city."

Rachel was about ready to slap him, and shout at him that Bruce was Batman, helping the city in a way no one had ever thought of. Feeling the anger flare, she bit her tongue, surprised that she felt like this. Usually she would just roll her eyes when Harvey would get into this mood, but now she was scared. She couldn't believe she actually wanted to hit him.

Maybe it was a sign of her own feelings.

She had promised Bruce she would keep his secret. She had never thought she would ever meet someone who would challenge that secrecy. But here was Harvey, one of the greatest people she knew; a man who she truly and genuinely loved, and she was panicking.

Why did Bruce have to always have this affect? She wasn't even thinking about the Bruce she knew, instead she was arguing with Harvey over a Bruce that everyone saw.

"Rachel?" She looked up when Harvey's voice sounded.

"Sorry, you know I don't like discussing Bruce's views. Just let me say what I always do. Bruce is a good person, and when Gotham is in need he will help, in his strange way. But for now, please understand, that him helping Gotham is to help you.

"Him throwing any one a fundraiser is no light thing. He likes you, probably what you're doing as the DA. Otherwise, please, drop it."

_-End Flashback-_

Looking back out the window, at the dark sky and city below her, illuminated by all the little dots of light on the streets below, she wondered where the two men she loved were; whether or not they were alive, whether they were okay, whether she would ever see them again. It was the only thought that occupied her thoughts until the world before her eyes went dark.

_-xXx-_

_Remember to Review!_


	9. Chapter 9

_I am SOOOOO sorry it has taken me so long to post. Given it's the end of the Uni year, I hope you all can understand that with the end of the year comes incredibly large essays that have been left too late, exams that have not been properly studied for, and procrastination in the form of _The Sims 2_. I've also had story ideas for numerous other places pop into my head and been forced to start them (none of them have been posted). I've also realized that from here in, I'm making stuff up, because I'm into Post TDK. So we are all in for a journey here, and who knows how long it will go for!_

_But, I have some good news for you. Because it has been so long I come with TWO NEW UPDATES! This is mostly because when I was writing this chapter I realized that it was going to be too long, and needed to cut it back. Then I realized that instead of cutting back, I'd expand and turn it into two chapters. _

_So, I hope you all enjoy, and find it in your hearts to forgive._

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Nine – The Morning the World Ended, part 1**

Her back ached; her muscles were tight; her joints were stiff. It was the pain a person felt when they'd been sleeping in a position that was neither comfortable nor in a bed.

Rachel groaned as she opened her eyes wearily, shifting her position and stretching. The sky over Gotham was clouded and grey; drops of rain were creating rivers down the windows creating patterns unpredicted or planned.

Wishing that she'd climbed into bed the night before she slowly stood up to properly take in the surroundings. The room was eerily dark; unlit and empty. The bed was still neatly made; the small table where a tray of food was regularly left was strangely empty. Rachel knew instantly that Bruce hadn't come home that night. But what was possibly more fearful, was that Alfred appeared to be absent too.

Groaning as she began to move, she began to look through the penthouse, searching for evidence and proof to her suspicions.

The living area was empty, and moving down to the formal area, she found the evidence she needed. No one was home. The always surprisingly small kitchen was empty and cold; the radio which usually played classic songs was switched off.

Despite the heating throughout the building, being alone sent chills throughout her body. She couldn't think where either Bruce or Alfred could be. Thoughts of death began to cover her mind, and unable to shake them, she raced into the main room and flicked on the television, hoping against all hope that Bruce, in particular, was okay.

"Ah, there you are, Miss Dawes." Rachel jumped at the sound of Alfred's voice. Looking up the stairs she saw him descending, leading Jim Gordon with an even more grief stricken, tired, and overworked look to his features.

"Where's Bruce?" Rachel asked, turning off the television.

Alfred gave her a look before he spoke. "Master Wayne had some business he needed to attend to this morning." Rachel knew from his expression that Bruce was indeed okay, but that with Gordon present, discussing his activities was not an option.

"Commissioner Gordon however, has some important news that you need to hear." He gave a small bow and left them alone.

Rachel stared at the police chief, fearing the content of this discussion, but unable to form any idea what it was going to be about. Instead she decided that the safest option was to play hostess.

"You look tired, Jim." She said somewhat lamely.

Gordon nodded, his expression unchanging. "You're going to want to take a seat for this."

Rachel found herself smiling. "Funny, I was going to offer you the same thing."

Gordon attempted a smile, and judging by the resultant expression, Rachel knew that what he was about to tell her was bad. "Unfortunately, I cannot claim to have good news for you." Rachel swallowed.

"Last night, was, ah, not a very good one. I really don't know how to tell you this, and as much as I would like to go with the not so bad news first, I unfortunately need to tell you this in order." He spoke low and soft. Rachel only swallowed and stared.

"Yesterday, Harvey escaped, for want of a better term, our custody. We, I believe that your apparent death pushed him over the edge. I'm sure you will have by no doubt seen on the news, reports of Maroni's death in a car accident."

"Harvey did it." Rachel had remained silent for the beginning of Gordon's speech, but hearing him mention Harvey's name forced her to act. "He killed Maroni didn't he." She felt tears well up in her eyes as she looked at Gordon, willing him to rebut her, but instead, he nodded weakly. It made the tears break.

"I believe that he did; along with one of my detectives, Wuertz, that he assaulted Detective Ramirez, and that he kidnapped my family, intent on making me suffer the same pain that he was." Rachel could hardly listen to him, sobs were beginning to form loud and painful. But at the mention of Ramirez's name, she felt anger well.

"Detective Ramirez picked me up; took me to that warehouse." She spat.

Gordon nodded again. "I know. She was in my office this morning telling me that."

Rachel hardly felt calmed by this; instead she possibly felt worse. But she chose not to attack the point. Learning that Harvey was indeed a killer rocked her. She no longer knew what she believed, or what she was to believe. She found herself questioning whether or not Gordon was being honest. But the problem was, she knew.

Gordon had been one of the incredibly few police officers who had not fallen into the trap so many others had. His boss had been the Captains, the Lieutenants, the Commissioner, the Mayor; his job had been protecting the city and the people from crime and fear.

"Last night, when Harvey took my family, he took them to 250 52nd street." Rachel looked up at him surprised; she had momentarily forgotten he was still there. She felt her heart fall and a chill race up her spine as she remembered the address where she had almost died.

"He didn't care what happened, so long as he got to see me suffer. Batman arrived, told Harvey to let my family go, to focus his anger on the people who made the decisions." He paused; Rachel could see this was difficult for him. "He flipped a coin, and shot Batman in the chest." Rachel jumped up, petrified that Bruce was dead. "He then turned the gun on himself and flipped the coin again; he said it was his lucky day." Rachel froze in mid-action.

"Then he turned the gun on my son; told me to tell him that everything was going to be okay. He flipped the coin." Rachel slowly fell onto her knees on the floor, came to Gordon's lap and rested her hands on his knees. "I don't know how the coin landed. Batman grabbed both Harvey and my son and took them over the edge."

Rachel felt the first tears begin to fall amongst a small explosion of sobs. "What happened?" Her voice squeaked as she spoke.

Gordon swallowed and she saw light glint on moisture at the corner of his eye. "Harvey fell to the ground below; Batman saved my son, before falling himself." He looked at her. "He then told me that we either die a hero, or live long enough to become the villain, and that Harvey was to be remembered as the hero."

Rachel, awed slightly that Bruce had listened to Harvey that night, couldn't help but fear what the ramifications of these actions were going to be. "What did he say?"

"Batman has taken the blame for every crime committed by Harvey Dent." Gordon said surprisingly simply.

Rachel gasped; she could not believe that this was happening; that Bruce was turning Batman into a man the city would loathe. "But surely people will not believe that?" She asked quietly.

Gordon stood up suddenly. "What choice do we have?" He asked her loudly, almost shouting. "It was either, admit the truth about Harvey and be forced to release hundreds of criminals he personally had jailed, or maintain the illusion of order Harvey created."

Rachel opened her mouth to speak; to argue as any good lawyer would do that this plan was ridiculous, but Gordon jumped down her throat before a sound could be emitted.

"Batman is the greatest hero this town has ever had, because he isn't. He doesn't make a point of saving peoples lives. He watches over us, he protects us, he guards us, and all without our complete knowledge. His heroism is great, but we don't need it now."

Rachel stood up, only to fall back into a chair. This was too much to handle; too much to take in. She found that she couldn't judge or question Batman's motives with Gordon, she needed Bruce.

Standing up she ran past Gordon and shouted Alfred's name. She didn't care what Gordon heard, she needed to understand this from Bruce, before she could understand it from anyone else.

_-xXx-_

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	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten – The Morning the World Ended, part 2**

"Where is he?" She found Alfred in the kitchen; the radio on, and Alfred's hips slowly swaying to its beat.

Alfred looked at her from the stove and frowned.

"Dammit Alfred, I don't care! Gordon's just told me that the world has pretty much ended but before I can accept that I need to speak to him." She shouted in retort.

"I didn't say anything." Alfred responded looking back to the pot he was working with.

"Alfred! Please take me to him. You know I'll go and look for him anyway, with or without your help."

Alfred sighed and switched off the hot plate. "Let me see the Commissioner out first. Get yourself something to eat from the fridge; the yoghurt is delicious." He left the kitchen, leaving her to stare at the fridge and wonder.

Above, she heard Alfred apologize for Rachel's rudeness and see Gordon out. She also heard Gordon respond that he understood her mindset given what he had told her about Harvey. A few minutes later Alfred was back in the kitchen, coat and keys in hand.

_-xXx-_

She was seething, but not with rage. Everything she had ever known about Bruce, about Harvey, hell even about Jim Gordon, everything had changed. She didn't know anymore how she felt or who she felt it for. But one thing was certain, she knew that her relationship with Harvey was over, and not just because he was dead.

The moment Gordon confirmed what she already knew, that Harvey had killed Maroni, she knew that no matter what happened in the end, she and Harvey could no longer be together.

He had been the best, the smartest, and one of the goodliest people that she had ever met, and those were the aspects of him that she was attracted to; not his good looks, high paying salary, or that fabulous apartment that overlooked the bay. But now he was truly one of the worst people.

She remembered the day Joe Chill died; what she had said to Bruce about the difference between Justice and Revenge. She realized, upon his return, that he got the message, although he handed out Justice in a slightly warped way.

But Harvey, the man who had always believed in Justice, and had to push the worst men into the courtroom, no matter how heavy or light the evidence, had gone out and killed at least two men in acts of revenge.

"Are you alright, Rachel?" Alfred asked her, surprising her out of her reverie. She touched her face and realized she was crying.

"I'm just thinking. I didn't realize my thoughts were affecting me." She responded, looking out the window and realizing they were heading in the opposite direction of the bunker. "Where are we going?"

Alfred looked at her. "I'm surprised you haven't already realized." He smiled.

"I've been thinking about a lot of things; I haven't really been noticing the surroundings." She responded.

"Given the magnitude of last nights events, Bruce will not be at the bunker; it's the wrong environment to deal with this type of news. I would have expected him to come to the penthouse, but he will likely want to be alone, and this leaves Wayne Manor." Alfred explained.

She sighed, staring out the car window as Alfred sped along the freeway. "I thought it wasn't finished yet?"

"Of course not; do you expect that a house like Wayne Manor could very easily be rebuilt in a year? No! But there is enough construction completed to make it safe, to some, livable, and to others, a memory restored."

Rachel nodded, not fully understanding, but understanding enough of Alfred's logic to understand why Bruce would be there.

A few minutes later they were on the main driveway, and then they were there. Rachel took a moment, as she always did, to take in the monument that was the home of Gotham's royal family, and afterwards, realized that she knew exactly where Bruce would be.

_-xXx-_

Whilst from the outside, the Manor looked complete, the inside was a completely different story. A maze of building materials, ladders, and scaffolding obscured what would be the great entrance hall. Weaving amongst the rubble Rachel darted up the stairs and along the many corridors until she saw it, the master bedroom.

Slowly approaching it, she saw him within, sitting on a folding chair staring into the room. There was a muffled noise from within, but she couldn't make out for certain what it was.

"Bruce?" She stood tentatively in the doorway watching him. It was like a mirror of the morning she walked in, back from the dead. His body held the same way, staring at the mask of Batman, except this time, he didn't jump up when he heard her voice. He suddenly became, once again and to her horror, the lost boy he had been for so many years, despising the world and hating who he was.

She approached him slowly. In the corner she saw a small black radio and realized that was what was making the noise. Then she heard Gordon's voice, offering what sounded like a eulogy.

"Do you remember what Harvey said, that night at dinner; how you either die a hero or become the villain, did you ever think or believe that would happen to Batman?" He asked her.

There was a small, two person couch opposite him, and she took a seat on it, reaching over, placed her hand on his. How could she admit always envisioning Batman as the villain? The first moment she met him he scared her, and ever since, seeing him, hearing him, she found it easy to forget just who it was underneath the mask.

Bruce looked up at her weakly, recognizing her silence as an admission. "You did, didn't you." She knew he wasn't angry, his tone was too heavy, too quiet to be angry.

"I hoped that day wouldn't come." She responded.

He nodded but she could see he wasn't convinced. It was true, she had never seen Batman as being someone who would be around forever, how could he? She had always tried to imagine Batman ending, being a memory as Gotham's savior. He would disappear as quickly as he had appeared; they would be together, something they had both wanted for a long time.

The radio continued to crackle with Gordon's voice. Neither Bruce nor Rachel spoke, but neither did they listen. It was just noise, filling the empty space.

The voice changed to a news reporter telling how Harvey Dent was dead; how a police detective was dead, and that the car accident from the previous day, were all results of Batman. He continued saying that the police were now stepping up their efforts to catch him.

Rachel looked at the floor as Bruce stood up, walked to the corner, and turned the radio off.

"Bruce?" She didn't know what she wanted to say, she could only hope that the sudden change in people's views of Batman wouldn't change him; wouldn't make his appearance revert to who he used to be.

"Harvey didn't deserve this;" Bruce spoke suddenly. "He was the hero; the hope; the salvation. He was everything Batman couldn't be, he was real; he had a face." She looked up as he spoke. She had never heard him like this, or at least not as an adult. It scared her.

She had spent years trying to get over the teenage crush she had had for him, and his absence made her believe it was gone. The other men that came into her life seemed to prove it. But then he returned, and he was different, she saw that in the news reports: 'The Prince of Gotham, Alive!' She would never forget those headlines, the news footage she would see when she turned on the TV; it was always of him, getting in Limousines or Bentley's or Rolls', getting out of sports cars, always surrounded by an entourage of blonde beauties, bombshells and bimbos.

And then she finally saw him in the flesh; he almost looked through her, and that was what sent her to the bathroom to ball her eyes out, not chastising him about his actions. Since learning who he really was, or who Batman really was, she had always regretted it.

"Harvey was my ticket out of the suit; he was the person Batman counted on more than anyone else. He was the key to my freedom…and you." He added, almost as an afterthought, making her bite her lip. She still hadn't told him the truth, hadn't told him she was going to choose Harvey over him, for all the reasons he had just said.

She stood up and turned away, how could she tell a man at the gates of despair that she had chosen another man? It would push him over the edge, and she couldn't do that; she couldn't do that to the one person who made her feel safest in the entire world.

"To the people, the Joker lost; he chose Harvey to fall, because he was the best of us. But in reality, the Joker won, because he removed Batman; destroyed him. Turned him into the criminal he truly is." It was at his last words that made her rush to him, forcing herself to his front and forcing his eyes to look at her.

"Don't say that!" She held his head in her hands, centimeters from her own. "The Joker did nothing of the sort. Wait until people begin to question the timing; wait until the police begin to question Gordon. So many members of Gotham's crime fighters have seen what Batman does and won't believe for a moment that you would kill a dirty cop, assault another, and kill head members of the Mob.

"How will they believe that at the same time you were fighting the Joker, saving the lives of passengers on two boats, you were able to be across town threatening Gordon's family? No one will believe it." She shook him as she made some of her points, trying to get through to him, and she would be incredibly surprised if any of it did (as much as she hoped it would) because she still knew too much of his character.

He merely smiled down at her sadly, lifting his hands to her wrists and moving her arms from his face, before stepping away.

"Bruce," she spoke to him as he continued walking. "Please don't become the old Bruce Wayne. I won't be able to stand it."

_-xXx-_

_Remember to Review!_


	11. Chapter 11

**_IT'S HERE! A NEW UPDATE! (Finally!)_**

_I have had a lot of trouble with this chapter; getting characterizations right, getting a suitable length, and explaining everything that has gone on and is going on has been difficult. And through all this I still think I missed out explaining some things._

_But I finally got there! So I hope you all enjoy._

_Note: Originally this chapter was going to have alot of reference to the weather. Thankfully, I cut 90% of it out, but the title still seemed to stick. The reason I think is also similar to Chapter Five's title of _1984_; random and partly logical._

_Now, chapter reading time...  
_

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Eleven: Rain and Flood**

A week went by; a week that was filled with no satisfaction and no further understanding of events that had altered Gotham's saviors. Rachel had spent most of her time in the penthouse, staring out at the city, thinking.

Nothing. Bruce wouldn't talk. Sure he would talk about other things, like how much money to donate to the rebuilding of Gotham General Hospital – he decided a couple of million was enough. Occasionally he would bring up her family; how where they, her aunts and uncles; how was her mother, etc. But the rest of the time he talked to her about nothing. She was sick of it.

She had had enough of talking about who would win the election; sick of discussing Union rights, fed up with looking at the latest economical data, tired of the knowledge of inner-sanctum board meetings, and bored of listening to him talk about things with her like he was in public.

But any time she would attempt to steer conversation towards the deep end, Bruce would stick his head in the sand, play dumb and ignore her. Afraid of what was going on with him, she spoke to Alfred when Bruce was out. But Alfred only looked at her sadly, rested a hand on her shoulder and told her he didn't know.

And the worst part of that conversation, she knew he was telling the truth.

So, as per usual, the window was her haven; the one place where she found warmth and comfort, plus a place to think. But after a week of dodged and un-answered questions, she was still in the same mess she had been in before. She had no idea.

The worst part of everything was the weather. Since the morning she found Bruce at the Manor, it had rained every day, and when it wasn't, the sky remained grey. It was as though Mother Nature was feeding the city with sadness.

Every newspaper, news program and radio show featured Batman as the worst sign of humanity, opposed to Harvey as being the brightest beacon of hope. She remembered throwing a shoe at the television when GCN lead off one of its programs with a story about how Batman had encouraged crime and fear within Gotham. Bruce had smiled sadly; Alfred had chuckled, before telling Bruce he might need a new television. Bruce had agreed, and then didn't say another thing.

The weather apparently was also affecting rebuilding of the Manor. She couldn't imagine why given the external structure was all but complete. Bruce would visit the site daily and get the latest information. Rachel wished she could go with him. Since being there she had longed to return. Despite the newness of rebuilt property, walking its walls had brought back some of her happiest memories, and reminded her of some of her most intense pain.

The main reason for this was because it was the most memories she had of a happy Bruce. From the summer they spent secluded because of rain, to the winter when she and her mom would always spend Christmas. But then there were the horrible memories, like his parents' funeral, when she realized that they wouldn't be spending their weekends and holidays together anymore.

No matter how many afternoons she would come over as a child, no matter how many times they would meet up in Gotham as teenagers, running from the paparazzi or meeting for coffee, she never saw true happiness in his eyes. He was simply showing off; sitting in the kitchen throwing nuts in the air and trying to catch them with his teeth, while they talked about music and movies, or studied.

But she always saw him when she left, possibly seeing the truth of his mindset. His eyes would be dull and dark, and his stance would fall. She always wished she could find some way to ease him of the pain he felt. It wasn't until he had been missing for a few years that she realized she would never be able to help him. But she still maintained hope.

Then he was back, and Batman had been his savior, not her, but she was still happy because he was happy.

Maybe they did have a future. But Batman had to go. She knew that, and she knew he knew that too.

But Batman wasn't leaving. Time went on and waiting became a chore. And then along came Harvey. He reminded her of what she was missing, and offered the possibility that Bruce wasn't the one. But at the same time, to Bruce, he became the person who would end Batman's protection of the city.

Trust her to put herself in a triangle.

She decided to wait, to see how events unfolded, especially after Harvey's proposal and Bruce's revelation that Harvey was his ticket out of the mask. But Bruce wasn't showing any signs of quitting, and when he let Harvey take the fall for him that was it. She chose Harvey Dent over Bruce Wayne. She didn't care what the magazines said about him and his record of charity help. She knew the real Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent was so much more than a façade.

She hoped that her decision would not dampen Bruce's happiness. But instead the Joker happened – again – and in the process, killed the man she loved, and appeared to destroy the man she had longed for.

"You okay?" His voice asked before the sound of a crumpling mattress: he'd collapsed on the bed.

She jumped; she hadn't heard him come in, and as such hadn't had the opportunity to stare out the window and attempt to ignore him. Usually it worked.

"I'm fine." She responded looking away from him, but still catching his amused grin at her reaction to him.

"No you're not. You're angry." He retorted, sighing.

Rachel focused on the building opposite, tilting her head in acknowledgement of his statement but remaining silent.

He sighed. "Ah, the silent treatment. An indication you're definitely angry with me."

"I'm not angry, just confused." She dug her nails into the palm of her hand; she'd taken the bait. She refused to say anything else; she could see where this was going.

He was going to ask her what she was confused about, then she would say she was still confused about why he turned Batman into a killer to save Harvey's reputation, and he would ignore her, allowing their conversation to end.

"What about?" He asked. She mentally congratulated herself.

"If I tell you, will you promise to actually respond?" She asked, facing him. Despite knowing he would turn on her and become silent, she was an attorney. Asking questions was what she did.

Bruce sighed and sat up, his back to her. "You want to know why I did it." He spoke.

Rachel felt like laughing, but there was a small part of her that flickered with hope. "Of course I do. I want to know why you're the depressed one when I'm supposed to be."

"A little self-indulgent, don't you think?" He countered.

Rachel narrowed her eyes at him, but heard the smile in his voice. "Bruce, I've lost everything. I'm supposed to be dead, which is why I'm here. You know I can't come out until after the Joker's trial is over, and the rest of his associates caught, and who knows how long that's going to take, especially given you can no longer help."

Bruce looked over his shoulder at her.

"What happened?" She asked quietly.

Bruce looked away and sighed. "It was either destroy Harvey's reputation and memory, or maintain Harvey's reputation and memory. Batman is whatever Gotham needs; a savior or a scapegoat." Rachel remained where she was unmoving. She had waited a week to get him to talk, and all she was hearing was what she already knew.

"The things I do, they're not hero worthy; they're far from it. I beat up men, take the law into my own hand, tamper with crime scenes and evidence, hack into police files and criminal databases, steal equipment, torture men, kidnap men, and all for what, to save Gotham?" He started to rant.

"You did!" Rachel hadn't wanted to interfere, but hearing him rant and say such things had an affect on her. "You assisted in putting Carmine Falcone in jail where he belongs. You forced a majority of criminal activity out into daylight and into the eyes of Gotham." Rachel scrambled to her feet and walked over to him. "You forced the police department to clean itself up; forced the public to stop feeling fear." Now she was ranting.

"And for what?" He stood up before her, his voice raised. "The Joker came in and destroyed everything; sent this city back to what it was like before Batman. He brought back the city's fear, and guess what, he succeeded!"

Rachel felt the wind leave her lungs. "The Joker did not succeed." She spoke darkly.

"Yes he did." Bruce countered, towering over her. "He destroyed Harvey; he killed him. I may have thrown him over the edge but it was the Joker who loaded the gun."

Rachel stepped backwards away from Bruce. "You chose the lesser of two evils. And yet you're still moping around, upset. The public is currently calling for your head, and praising Harvey. Have you once stopped to think about the stories Gordon has been forced to spread?" She questioned, stepping back to him.

He sighed and looked down. "You don't think I have?" He said quietly. "You don't think I've noticed the fact that they _aren't_ talking about how Harvey got to that warehouse; how I could have been holding him and Gordon's family hostage when I _wasn't_ _even_ _there_ when Gordon found out or called in back-up? You don't think that I haven't thought about Gordon's son? About his family? They haven't even spoken to the media. And what happens when a story leaks that Harvey was the one holding the gun?" He sat down on the bed.

Rachel sat down next to him and hugged him. She understood now. He was afraid of what would happen when the truth came out. She tried to think of something to say, but couldn't think of anything. Telling him it would all be okay, she knew, because she'd been thinking about it herself, she knew that it wasn't going to be.

Everything always comes out.

_-xXx-_

_Yeah possibly a lazy last line. _

_I just wanted to say that I REALLY do not know where this story is going. I have a vague idea of what I want, but I don't know how or when it's going to get there. So sit down, strap in and watch for the next update……although I strongly recommend that you go and invest in some form of caffeinated food/drink because knowing me, it may take a while, although I hope to get another update up by Christmas – hey, I'm being realistic!_

_Oh, and before I forget, I would also like to send a BIG **indicates** **thankyou to everyone who has reviewed, favorited and/or alerted this story** so far. I will happily admit that I am a review whore, and I regularly forget the merit of Favorites and Alerts. To those who like my story so much you just _have _to know what happens next and make an Alert, it means alot. To those who possibly love my story and make it a Favorite, wow! I don't realise how (possibly) better-than-average writer I am until I see how many people like my work._

-xXx-

_As always __**Remember to Review!**_


	12. Chapter 12

_I told you I'd get an update in by Christmas. I'm going to attempt to get another one up by Christmas, if not, then I will definitely have one up by New Year. As usual, thanks to everyone who has reviewed, favorited or alerted; it means a lot._

_This chapter is what I can safely say is the proper beginning of Bruce and Rachel, although there is still probably going to be a number of chapters in which they work out everything. Now all I have to do is finish this story and not allow the numerous other stories that are in my head or I have started get in the way._

_Read on!_

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Twelve: Mourning  
**

It was safe to say that despite being allegedly one of the most prized heads amongst Gotham's underworld, Rachel Dawes's life was dull and boring. Months had passed; months filled with anxiety, fear, wonder and confusion.

The most exciting thing she was able to do was walk out onto the balcony in the evenings.

At first, she spent her time reading the newspaper, particularly the letters and opinions but she found herself reading the same thing. Harvey was great; why hasn't Batman been caught; are the police doing enough, etc. It didn't take her long to start seeing the pile of newspapers every morning and cringe.

Although, despite that, she did still read certain articles that Alfred would point out; apparently Bruce was engaged to Lydia Elsternwick, whoever that was. Rachel had been so excited for him that she cut the article out, laminated it and left it on the desk in his study.

He had told her this was how journalists who had been turned down by him reacted. He then reminded her that he'd been allegedly engaged three other times. When he had visited New York he found himself linked to Paris Hilton.

_-Flashback-_

"You were engaged to Paris Hilton?" Rachel asked him as they sat down to dinner.

"The reason I now make a point of not socializing when I leave Gotham." He retorted, throwing the laminated article to a side.

"Do tell." She was starved of gossip, she needed a good story.

"I had been invited by a few people to see the opening of some show on Broadway. She was also there; donated some of her stuff to the costume department. Anyway, we were introduced at the after-party; she was drunk and kept on throwing herself at me. When I got back to the hotel I had an hour long shower, scrubbing myself clean." He explained as Alfred poured some wine.

"I sent him a card offering my congratulations." Alfred said with a smile.

"Yes and I promptly threw it out." Bruce retorted.

Rachel smiled at them. "How did I miss this?" She asked, looking from Alfred to Bruce.

"If your reading material is anything to go by, I'm not surprised you missed out." Alfred teased.

Rachel squinted at him. "Just because I'm a woman of substance does not mean I don't read gossip magazines."

"Where, at the _beauty parlor_?" Bruce joined in the teasing between mouthfuls.

Rachel looked at him darkly. "Do not ever mock a woman's necessity to be pampered."

Bruce held up his hands in surrender, but Alfred didn't let up so easily. "Oh I wouldn't dream of it. If it weren't for the _beauty parlor _Bruce's mother would have had dirty blonde hair, and her nails would have always been chipped and un-painted." He smiled, winking at Rachel before leaving the room.

"Leave my mother's beauty habits out of this." Bruce scolded, calling after Alfred, although his eyes were sparkling.

"But seriously, why don't I know about this? Paris Hilton is known; who the hell is Lydia Elsternwick?" Rachel pushed.

"It was only reported in New York; I apparently insulted some personality when I told her that the brunette I was interested in was not her." He responded, looking at his food.

"Oh." Rachel responded, then felt heat race into her cheeks when she realized he was referring to her. Bruce also noticed a shift in the mood of the room, and the two continued eating in silence.

_-End Flashback-_

It was still something she found difficult to talk about, their feelings. For so long they had been unspoken and possibly forcibly ignored. But then she kissed him and everything changed. Those feelings that had been kept under the rug were released into the open for both to see.

That night, she'd stood in her apartment in a daze. She couldn't believe what had happened; could not believe she had been so forward as to kiss him, then tell him she couldn't be with him yet.

Alcohol did nothing to ease her spirits; a cold shower did nothing for her body. When she had finally gone to bed, the images that flew before her eyes were like those she had when she was 15. The morning after hadn't been much better.

But that day at the office had not been a day to remember. She kept on walking into things, forgot what the major cases were, and repeatedly had hands waving in front of her face.

But now, well her mind thankfully was a little more distracted. Despite seeing Bruce topless occasionally – the first time had been the worst, seeing a huge bruise on his stomach and being told that that was where Harvey's bullet had hit him – her dreams were regularly nightmares.

Shortly after his death, when Gordon came to talk to her, she had demanded he bring her photos of what Harvey had been turned into. She wanted to see the burns; she wanted to see the damage.

Gordon had told her he would bring what he could the next time he came by; Bruce had told her the sight was not something she wanted to see. It would destroy her memories of him.

But she ignored him, despite how right he was.

So now whenever her dreams featured Harvey he would first appear as the man she knew, but slowly the skin would start to peel, start to burn, start to tear and fall off whilst he would be smiling at her.

Every night he came to her, and every night she would wake up either screaming or in a cold sweat. Bruce helped as best he could. After the first night she spent in the penthouse, she had started to sleep in the guest bedroom, but whenever she woke up screaming, she found her way to him.

And then to top those nights off, as she would be snuggled against him, her mind would start blaring the ugly fact that she had chosen Harvey and that Bruce still didn't know. So then she would lie awake for hours, contemplating how the hell she was going to tell him.

It was safe to say that everything was a mess.

But now, sitting curled up on the sofa watching a movie, her mind went to Harvey again, to the Harvey she had loved. Memories of him rushed her conscious thoughts, and then she was crying. Her entire body began to shake as tears began to flood her eyes and flow down her cheeks.

She couldn't stop; she didn't want to stop. She cried and cried into the sofa for what seemed like hours. The movie ended, the credits rolled but she didn't notice. She would never see Harvey again, and the only time she ever would, he was a man being ripped to shreds.

She didn't hear the ping of the elevator; didn't hear the concerned steps approach her; didn't hear the voice call her name; she didn't hear anything until she saw Bruce's face before her; she didn't feel anything until her face was buried against him, her arms wrapped tightly around him, the tears still flowing.

Slowly, whether it was the comforting circles he was drawing on his back, the heat from his body, the hidden strength that she felt in his arms, or maybe just the fact that it was him, the tears began to dry, the sobs began to hush, and her body began to still.

"I would ask if you're okay, but I think I already know the answer." Bruce whispered to her, when the only sound she made was the soft occasional sniffle.

"I want to see his grave." She whispered in response, pulling away from him to look him in the eyes.

Bruce looked her in the eyes, one of his hands brushed hair off her face. He kissed her forehead as he stood up, holding a hand out to her. "It'll be dark soon."

Rachel smiled weakly, taking his hand, their fingers interlocking as she followed him out.

_-xXx-_

_Remember to Review!_


	13. Chapter 13

_Merry Christmas! Here is your present, I hope you enjoy it and use it well._

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Thirteen: Moving On  
**

The car trip had been silent. Rachel kept her head down, her eyes focused on her lap, whilst Bruce stared at the bitumen before him. Neither spoke. Neither wanted to. After all, what was there to say?

Four months had lapsed since the Joker's rampage and Harvey's death, and in that time, whatever mourning that had been done, had been done in silence and in private. Although Rachel still wondered at those times when Bruce or Alfred would catch her with a tear in her eye and she would cover it up, feeling ashamed.

But now she was finally being offered a chance to mourn and move on properly, by saying goodbye to the man she loved. But did she still love him, even in death, or had her feelings for him been affected by his Two-Face rampage? It was these thoughts, and these thoughts only, that occupied her brain until the car came to a stop in the Gotham Cemetery car park.

Still in silence, Bruce lead her along a path amongst and between headstones, family monuments and tombs, and finally to a routine grave; the only difference was the name etched into the stone; Harvey's.

"I'll be in the car. Take your time." Bruce said softly, brushing his hand on her shoulder.

Rachel listened to his footsteps disappear, but her eyes remained focused on the carvings.

_Harvey Dent_

_1972 – 2006_

_Beloved by his Family,_

_Champion of Gotham_

She found her eyes focusing on the bottom two lines, and wondering who chose them. The man lying at peace six feet below her had not been a champion, but a menace. He killed two men, one a cop, and assaulted another, before torturing and almost destroying another man's life and family.

But then Rachel saw the top line and she felt her lip quiver. Harvey. Instantly her mind flashed to that last moment when she saw him; smiling as a SWAT van door slammed in his face. From there she saw every moment; when they first met; their first date, when he proposed. She felt her knees give and she collapsed to the grass beneath her, reaching for the stone and tracing the letters of his name with her fingers.

"Hey, it's me." She whispered to herself, swallowing her tears and sobs. "Yeah, I'm alive, somehow. I um, I'm sorry that I haven't come sooner. I don't know why I haven't." She spoke to the granite quietly.

She fell silent for a few moments, her hand dropping to the grass allowing her to properly stare at the words before her. After a number of minutes, in which she made herself a little more comfortable on the grass, she found herself laughing.

"I came here to see your grave; to mourn you properly; to say goodbye and I don't even know if you can hear me, and instead I start worrying what you must think of me for not coming sooner." She sighed to herself.

"Truth is, I shouldn't even be outside, and if Gordon knew, he'd shout at me and call me a fool. See, I'm now a prized scalp amongst Gotham's gangs. The Joker's plans, despite the Joker being locked up and on trial, still have some resonance amongst the underworld. I should be frightened for my life and in New Mexico living the life as a former aspiring model cooking steaks and drinking too much tequila – not that there's such thing. But instead I'm living in Bruce Wayne's penthouse in the middle of Gotham's CBD, unable to go outside, unable to work, and unable to be who I was.

"But then, I'm not who I used to be. I don't think I'll ever be that person again." Rachel fell silent again and once again reached for the letters of his name.

She didn't know how long she was quiet for; didn't notice the light beginning to fade quickly. All she knew was that she wasn't done yet.

"Who are you, up there?" She asked quietly. "Are you the man I knew, or the man who died? I don't even know why that matters. You're still Harvey Dent; you'll always be Harvey Dent." For the first time a tear leaked and she quickly brushed it away, and looked away from the stone before her. In the distance she saw a pair of people leaving a bunch of flowers at a grave before walking away. The thought managed to invade her mind which had gone empty.

"I didn't even bring flowers." She spoke, staring at the spot where a bunch of flowers should be. "Not that you'd want them." She smiled sadly, remembering.

"Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if you had been told I was alive." She spoke, her tears and sobs pausing as seriousness overtook her. "I don't think I ever asked Gordon. I was supposed to be dead; he wanted me to go into Witness Protection. But I always think about how life would have played out if you knew the truth. Would you still be dead?" She said that one word and her façade broke.

"What happened to you Harvey? When did you become the vigilante? Why did you destroy yourself? Did you even care about what you had achieved? You knew Batman wanted to pass on his mantle to you but then you, you…" she trailed away. She had come back to the reason of Harvey's change; her.

"You never should have avenged me, or fought to ruin the lives of the people that ruined yours. I wasn't worth it. I'm not worth it." She said sadly thinking of Bruce.

Bruce and Harvey, the two men who had unknowingly fought each other for her affection. The two men who she loved so much it was painful. The two men who she couldn't choose between. The two men whose lives would have been destroyed if she had died. The two men she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

"When you proposed, I was thrown." She spoke after an extended pause. "I didn't answer because, yes, you were right; there was someone else….Bruce." She said almost too simply, falling quiet again. "I know how upset you must be about that, I know what you thought about him. But he, he's Batman. I don't really know how long I've loved him for, but what I do know, is that when he came back to Gotham as Batman, I knew I couldn't be with him, not yet.

"So I told him I would wait for him, Batman wasn't going to be around forever. But then you came along, and you were everything that he was and everything that he wasn't, and so much more. And I fell in love with you, so truly, so deeply. And then you proposed and I was suddenly faced with this huge decision that should have been so easy. Break your heart and wait for Bruce, whose job as Batman wasn't going away, or break his and marry you. I knew either way I would be unhappy.

"And then you told the world you were Batman whilst Bruce stood by and watched, not even bothering to speak up. I realized he couldn't live without Batman and suddenly I knew that marrying you was the only thing I could do." She smiled, fingering the letters of his surname.

"Rachel Dent; it had a nice ring to it." She smiled, remembering those five seconds when she had imagined their wedding and the sound of her name alongside his. "I would have married you and had no regrets. I would have been happy as your wife, and I would have loved and respected you until the day I died.

"But here we are." She shrugged looking up at the sky, and for the first time seeing darkness above her, separated by the few lights within the cemetery and the twinkling stars high above. "And I realize now, as hurtful and as painful as it will be, that I never should have lead you on, no matter how much I loved you. I'm in love with Bruce Wayne, and I always will be." She felt hot tears spring to her eyes.

"You never should have loved me."

_-xXx-_

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	14. Chapter 14

_Hey guys, I see you all enjoyed my Christmas present which makes me happy._

_I was hoping to get an update up a little bit earlier than this (then I look at my calendar and realize it's only been two week's since my last update…gee I'm spoiling you) but I went away for a week over New Year (and a happy one to all of you who can be bothered reading this) and then I was looking for somewhere to live this year, and today I finally found a place! Yay for me! So the next update may be in a little while but hopefully it will be up within a month._

_Any way, I'm finally getting into some fluffy territory here (woot for some… Christina-Potter-09 I hope this satisfies your fluffiness request) and there should be more to come._

_Sadly, I'm also getting close to the end; I'm going to guess that there will be another 5 chapters (I know it's so sad, and we're just getting to know each other) but all good things must end, and I like preparing people for the end so that they can go off and find something else to keep them strapped to their seats._

_So, now that I have finished rambling, on with the update!_

_Nb: I'm in a rather lazy mood at the moment and could not be bothered doing a proper spell/grammar check. My apologies for any "toe"s that are meant to be "to"s and etc.  
_

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Fourteen: Darkness**

Rachel had remained silent the entire journey home, despite feeling like she was bawling. She couldn't think of a time in her life when she had been as upset and heartbroken as she was now. Finding her college boyfriend in bed with some girl hadn't even made her as upset as she now was.

When they returned to the penthouse she locked herself in her room, continuing to cry into the pillow. She didn't know when she fell asleep but all she knew was that one moment the window was dark, and the next bright sunlight was flowing in. And she still felt horrible.

She hated herself. She had loved Harvey so much, but she had at the same time only been using him until Bruce came to her, and that hadn't been fair on him. He was a brilliant guy; he was amazingly smart, sweet, caring, loyal, sexy and good. He was the man every woman dreamed of having, and yet all that she wanted was Bruce.

And to top it off, she had begun to hate herself for turning down Bruce that day amongst Wayne Manor's ruins. She should have known; it wouldn't matter if they were together or not, she would always be a target because his feelings would never die. She had been a fool thinking that they ever would.

So now, at 8 o'clock in the morning of a bright, clear, sunny day, Rachel Dawes fully understood what it was to have a broken soul; what it felt like to be the Scarlet Woman. She felt ashamed, embarrassed and downright furious with herself for the way she had toyed with two brilliant men, only to destroy one and almost crush the other.

She slipped into the small (and yet enormous) en-suite bathroom and stared at her reflection. Since beginning her time with Bruce, she had neglected to wear make-up (after all, what was the point when she didn't need to impress any one?), however her face without it looked worse. Her skin was puffy, especially around her eyes where it was also red; her eyes were pink, and there appeared to be a stain from where the tears had been falling.

After splashing her face with water, she stripped herself of her clothes and jumped into a cold shower. She didn't feel like she deserved hot water. Once in, she stood under the frigid water, soaking herself and allowing herself to be punished in a non-invasive way.

However no matter hard she tried to stop, she continued to cry. She was beginning to think that horrible was far to light a word to describe how she was feeling.

Afterward, she wrapped herself in the bathrobe, and once again lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling. In a way, a relief flooded over her; she had finally stopped crying. But in the place of tears was an incredibly heavy feeling on her chest and heart.

She didn't know how long she lay there, paying close attention to her chest when she heard a small tap on the door. She didn't bother responding, Bruce or Alfred would just come in anyway.

"Hey." Bruce's voice, although he was talking quietly, rang through the room.

Rachel didn't respond. Didn't move her head or speak in response; instead she rolled over so that her back was facing him. Hearing his voice had made the weight in her heart become a dull ache.

"Are you okay?" He asked. She heard him enter the room, shutting the door weakly behind him, and cross to the bed.

Again she didn't respond, only brought a hand to her mouth and started biting her knuckles.

"Rachel, what's going on? You've been fine and dandy, so to speak, and then last night you had some sort of epiphany and you've been upset ever since." He asked, placing a hand on her shoulder, rolling her over so that she was facing him.

Rachel sighed but looked away, refusing to answer his question.

"Rachel?" Bruce pressed, his voice louder.

"I just realized something, that's all." She spoke through almost clenching teeth.

"Rachel, I know what it's like to lose someone," Bruce began, before Rachel cut him off.

"This has nothing to do with Harvey's death." She exclaimed, surprising herself. She didn't need to hear how Bruce managed his grief after the death of his parents, she already knew. And besides, losing your parents is completely different to loosing someone who you want to spend the rest of your life with.

Bruce held up his hands in surrender, although she couldn't see them. "Okay; I merely assumed that you were upset because the reality of Harvey's death became clear. I'm sorry I forgot you are a woman." Bruce muttered the last bit under his breath, although Rachel, knowing him too well, was able to hear it.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She sat up and turned to face him. "You think I'm just being a typical temperamental woman?" She was beginning to screech. "You think that I for one minute these past few months ignored the fact that Harvey was dead? The moment Gordon told me Harvey was dead I just wanted to bawl my eyes out, but instead, I was a little preoccupied in trying to work out why the hell it was that you decided to take the blame for Harvey's crimes." She yelled, standing up and walking away from the bed; away from Bruce.

"Well then what happened?" He asked again. "I spent almost an hour sitting in my car watching you; watching you talk, watching you cry, watching you stare off into space. And then suddenly, you jumped up, ran to the car, told me to take you home, and then you cried the entire way home." It was now Bruce's turn to shout.

"Now, I'm sorry that I placed your gender as a reason for your distress, but you come home, lock yourself in here, refuse food, refuse offer's of comfort, and you remain here lying on your bed in a wet bathrobe, soaking the bed and telling me this has nothing to do with grief. Sorry, Rachel, but this is grief." As he spoke he initially made Rachel's anger rise, but the more he went, the feeling of anger fell and was replaced with the dull ache in her chest, only more intensified.

"I realized something while I was talking to him, while I was saying goodbye." She began, walking back to the bed and sitting down. "I realized that as much as I had loved Harvey when he was alive, it was only a part of me. I realized that I was using him the man who would keep me happy until…" she trailed off and looked up at him weakly.

Love and romance had never been a topic they had ever been comfortable discussing with each other, especially when the love and romance was something that they were going to share. The biggest conversation they had ever had was the night before he was supposed to turn himself in, when he questioned her about them.

Bruce understood exactly what she was talking about, and sat down beside her, looking at her knee, whilst she stared at the carpet. "I don't believe that." He said quietly, earning a sharp look from her. "You would have made me fight." He finished by staring her in the face.

Rachel shook her head sadly, bringing a hand up to his cheek. "No I wouldn't have."

_-xXx-_

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	15. Chapter 15

_[Insert friendly greeting]_

_[Insert appreciation of reviews/favorites/alerts]_

_Just to let you all know, this chapter and the next chapter are a sort of two-parter, however part two won't be up for a few days because I haven't finished it, and both shall be independent chapters. The main reason for this is the length. This chapter has a flashback sequence in it which goes longer than I had anticipated and which thus knocks a lot of the fluff that I was going to have in this to chapter sixteen. However, there is still a little bit in this, and I am leaving it with a semi-cliff-hanger ending (just because I am so god-awfully nice)._

_So without further ado, on with the show…story!_

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Fifteen: In Hiding**

Three days after their 'talk' which had mostly comprised of them holding each other silently in a strange confusing mood, Bruce suggested that they needed to get out of the penthouse and out of Gotham. It was an idea that had been influenced, not just by the small looks Alfred would send them both, but by Gordon visiting and telling her once again that the Joker case was proving to be difficult and that she was going to have to remain in hiding.

So now, Rachel was lying on her back, her eyes closed, feeling a soft breeze wash over her, the hot sun blaze above her, and hearing the gentle laps of the sea. Spending some time aboard the Wayne family yacht had been one of the best things she had heard slip from Bruce's lips in those few days.

However, whilst she was free to admit she was in a state of bliss, not having to worry about boredom, or the state of confinement she frequently felt in the penthouse, lying in complete relaxation left her brain to whir.

Bruce had been very keen on it being just them. Alfred had happily accepted his Master's request, but before they had left, he had pulled her aside for some well placed words.

_-Flashback-_

Rachel didn't realize that in the few months she had been living in the penthouse she had managed to acquire so much stuff. Whilst they were only going away for a few nights at the most, Rachel still felt as though she was under-packed. Bruce had one solitary bag whilst she had four.

"Rachel, please understand, we are not going to be invited to any parties with drug dealers; we are not going to be going ashore for some romantic dinner; you do not need to take _everything_." Bruce had sighed, pinching his nose when he saw the amount of bags she had packed.

Alfred had chuckled in the background, earning a playful death-glare from Bruce which only heightened his amusement.

"Bruce, that bag has clothes in it." She indicated the biggest bag. "That bag has all my lovely female products that you don't want to know about, the smallest bag is a handbag and the fourth bag has shoes." She retorted, earning a stunned expression from not just Bruce, but Alfred also.

In fact, Bruce looked as though he was about to faint. "You're bringing shoes? Please tell me that 'shoes' is really a pair of sandals and sneakers." Bruce felt like he was getting a headache. Why had he suggested this stupid idea again?

Rachel smiled, albeit evilly. "No, I have three pairs of sandals, my slippers, and two pairs of flip-flops." She retorted.

Bruce rubbed his face, paying special attention to his forehead. He was going to kill Alfred for going to her apartment and getting all that stuff she had asked for. He should have told him not to bother about the shoes. "Try and reason with her while I just go and kick myself for a few minutes." Bruce turned and spoke to Alfred, before moving off into another room.

Rachel and Alfred shared a look, each acknowledging that Bruce's 'going to kick himself' comment had really meant 'I'm going to get some hard liquor and remind myself it's only a few days.'

"I suppose, upon the time of Bruce Wayne's marriage, scenes such as this shall be reasonably frequent." Alfred spoke, moving to take the bags down to the car.

He had only moved two steps when he stopped and turned to look at Rachel, who suddenly found the topic of Bruce Wayne and marriage to be incredibly un-interesting. "Miss Dawes?" His voice broke through her complete un-interesting thoughts about the next Mrs. Wayne.

"Oh, sorry Alfred." Rachel spoke, thinking he required assistance with the elevator door.

"Miss Dawes, I am going to go out on a limb and say that the true reason Bruce suggested this outing was so that you both could come to some agreement regarding your feelings for one another." Alfred spoke quietly.

Rachel froze. She had honestly thought the exact same thing when Bruce made the suggestion, although she had made a conscious effort to ignore it and make a point that these few days were to be solely about her getting out of Gotham and getting some air. However she could tell that there was a reason to his words, and upon her extended silence, Alfred continued.

"You see Rachel, the thing is, that any relationship you two attempt will come of nothing if you don't tell him about the letter." Rachel felt her heart plunge at his words. "I am well aware that it is not my place to inform Bruce of the contents, however, you told me to give him that letter when the time is right, and when you walked into that room, his reaction to seeing you alive made me realize that had you have died, there would never be a right time.

"But, obviously, you are alive, and he needs to know the truth. And if you don't tell him, it is something that will gnaw at you until it is too late, and when that time comes, he may not be able to forgive you." With those words, he turned and entered the now open elevator doors, leaving her alone in the entrance hall, with her mind racing.

_-End Flashback-_

She was glad that Bruce and she had needed to go by helicopter to Port Franklin where the Wayne yacht was docked, the noise was too loud, talking was impossible.

But now, her mind was panicking. She knew, of course, that Alfred was right. She needed to tell Bruce the truth sooner rather than later, but she had no idea where to start. Walking up to him and saying 'Hey Bruce, I was going to marry Harvey and just be your friend' seemed to be the wrong way she went about it. As such, her mind, whilst it wasn't just panicking, was also fantasizing scenarios where she would tell him the truth. However each fantasy ended with him telling her she was bitch and kicking her overboard.

She felt rather certain that telling him the truth whilst they were on a boat together was a sure fire way to get herself killed. Then again, all she needed to do for that to happen was walk along Gotham's streets.

Unable to take her mind's varying directions, and in an angry huff, Rachel hit the section of boat deck she was lying on with her hands, sitting up and staring at Bruce, who in turn, was staring at her over the top of the book he was reading.

"You okay?" He asked her, lowering his book and giving her a good look at his chest, which he was proudly displaying through the undone buttons of his shirt.

Rachel huffed. "No. I mean, yes." She instantly realized her mistake and tried to cover it, but knew Bruce didn't buy it.

He just tilted his head down and looked at her. "Right, because that was clear." He stood up and walked over to her, sitting on the edge of the boat opposite her.

Rachel shook her head and looked away. "I'm just frustrated with the Joker case, that's all." She lied, making sure that he didn't see her face.

For some reason Bruce had always been able to tell when she was lying, probably because she'd never been good at hiding it from him. She could only hope that by him not seeing her face he wouldn't see through her.

She didn't know if he believed her though, because when she finally looked at him, he was watching her with an interested expression. "What?" She asked.

Bruce shrugged and looked away, standing up again and walking back to his chair, taking his shirt off. "I'm thinking that it's time you relaxed properly." He spoke.

Immediately Rachel felt a bad feeling in her gut. There was something in Bruce's voice that she hadn't heard since they were teenagers. It was the tone that always implied she was about to find herself coughing and spluttering and very, very wet.

"Bruce, you better not be thinking what I think you're thinking." Instantly she regretted changing immediately into her bathers when they were on board, although she doubted being in everyday clothes would stop him.

He turned back to face her, a completely blank and innocent expression on his face. As he approached her, Rachel jumped to her feet and began backing away from him, shaking her head furiously.

"Please, Bruce. Please don't." She found herself begging.

"Don't what?" He asked a smirk on his face.

Rachel felt something hard press into her back and realized she had gone back as far as she could. "Please don't throw me overboard." She begged.

_-xXx-_

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_Author's note: Just in case I haven't already mentioned it, I recently started a new _Batman Begins/The Dark Knight _story called 'The Legend of Batman'. I'd be really touched if you checked it out, and reviewed. And just so you know, our favorite female may be making an appearance in later chapters._


	16. Chapter 16

_Hello again! As usual, thanks for all the reviews, alerts, favorites. It's all just great and a boost to my already large ego. Enjoy this chapter, it's full of angsty/fluffy goodness so I hope you shall all enjoy._

_One thing I will say is that I am not 100% sure when I'll be able to update this. Next week I'm moving and for those who know the pressures and stress of moving, it's bloody annoying and lasts for a while. All I can say is sit tight, and be prepared for a couple of weeks without an update._

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Sixteen: Relaxing**

He was still smiling at her, and his eyes were still glinting. He looked as though he was perfectly aware at how much his taunting was affecting her. The knowledge that she was also attempting to become one with the cabin wall let him know she was right where he wanted her to be.

"Please don't throw me overboard." She begged, her eyes trembling with innocent fear.

His smile only widened as she spoke, and with one final step he had her trapped. "But where would the fun in that be?" He whispered in her ear.

Before she had a true chance to react, he'd swept her off her feet, carried her to the boat railing and thrown her into the water, feet first. Feeling the water cover her, once she finally surfaced, as she expected to be, she was coughing and spluttering, whilst Bruce was at the railing, laughing.

"Bruce I am _so _going to kill you." She coughed, getting her bearings in the water.

"I look forward to that." Bruce responded, before following her into the water in a semi-graceful swan dive.

Rachel, once again feeling a little unsure as to her safety, started moving towards the ladder. Not only was there the fear of what creatures were lurking below and wanted to eat her, there was also the fear that staying in the water would be very bad with Bruce around. He always managed to give her Swimmers Ear from all the splashing.

"Hey, where are you going?" Bruce's voice sounded behind her.

"I'm not staying in this water with you around." She retorted, looking over her shoulder at him.

"But what's the point of relaxing then?" She heard him swimming up behind her, knew he was close.

"I was perfectly happy relaxing up on deck before you decided to throw me overboard." She sighed, trying to get a grip on the ladder, but finding it difficult.

"Yes, you were so happy relaxing up on deck that you kept on huffing and groaning and thinking about what we are." He spoke.

Rachel turned around and found him a lot closer than she had anticipated. She felt herself a little thrown by his presence, and his statement. He was so wrong, but at the same time, he was so right. She needed to tell him the truth, but the expression in his eyes held her back.

"I'm just confused." She whispered.

Bruce got as close to her as he could, resulting in her being pushed against the hull. "Then what did you mean the other day, when you told me I would not have had to fight for you?"

He was so close; she could feel her body trembling. She could see with perfect clarity the beads of water on his forehead; his eyelashes, bonded into clumps. She could see his breathing catch, see his heart-beat speed up, and see his intestines begin to knot.

"What are you confused at?" He asked her quietly, staring at her lips.

It was the perfect moment. There bodies were pressing against each other, each time they spoke it sent chills down the others spine, their steadfast gaze on the other made both their knees go weak. All it would take would be the barest of movements and their lips would be locked together. But Rachel couldn't do it.

She turned her head away and knew she was being ridiculous. Wasn't this what she wanted? Wasn't this what she had dreamed about since she was seventeen? Wasn't this what she had realized she would have dumped Harvey for in an instant to get it?

Well that was the problem. That epiphany had made begin to question everything she had ever had with Harvey. How had she been so foolish to think that she would ever be able to love someone truly when Bruce was still in her life? How had she been so blind to see that her love for Bruce was ever-present in her heart and would remain so until the day she died? How had she managed to allow Harvey's smile to blind her?

"Rachel?" Rachel jumped. She had been off in her own world once again comparing Bruce and Harvey that she had completely forgotten Bruce was in front of her, awaiting an answer.

Rachel suddenly found that she couldn't look at him. She couldn't get lost in his eyes again.

"I um, I just, am." She said, rather lamely, and immediately wished she had never opened her mouth at all.

"And that is so helpful." Bruce sighed, pushing away from her. "Here I was thinking that you spent what, seven months in love with a guy that wasn't me, and then you suddenly realize that you weren't in love with him, but you were in love with me so now you're having to deal with the results of what that means to you, and what Harvey meant to you." He said, surprisingly simply.

Rachel smiled and felt like laughing. He always had a sixth sense when she was concerned. But even this time they way he spoke was a little too obvious for him. "Have you been talking to Alfred about this?" She asked.

"Maybe a little bit. Did it sound like I had been? I thought I paraphrased very well." Bruce smiled, swimming closer to her.

"No, but for you that was surprisingly intelligent." She teased.

"Hey, I am fully intelligent. Let's not forget that my IQ is higher than yours." He retorted.

"We were seventeen when we took that damn test. I'll have you know that mine has jumped ten points since then, which means that mine is now bigger than yours." She continued her teasing, forgetting they had been in the midst of a deep and meaningful conversation only moments ago.

Bruce's eyebrows jumped up close to his hairline at her words. "A whole ten points?" He mock exclaimed. "You must be so proud of yourself."

Rachel splashed him in response. "Oh, is that the best you have?" He asked, his eyebrows dancing as he wiped his face with one hand and the other moved into combat mode.

Rachel knew this was a fight she was not going to win. Twenty or so years they had known each other, and never once had she won a splashing fight. Swimmer's Ear or the beginning's of drowning had taught her to never attempt to win. Catching him off guard was not a successful campaign. He still always won.

With this in mind, Rachel, still close to the ladder, began the difficult climb up. Bruce however, as she expected him to do, started splashing her from behind, whilst he swam towards her, and when she felt a hand lock onto her ankle, she knew that that she wasn't going to be able to escape.

With a simple tug, Bruce had her falling the few feet back into the water, catching her easily before she submerged.

"Now, was that really the best you have?" He asked, his face inching closer to hers.

"No." She whispered in response. She couldn't help but stare at him as his face got closer and closer to hers. "It wasn't even close." She whispered again, before closing the gap between them.

_-xXx-_

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	17. Chapter 17

_Hey guys! Fluff filled beginning onto a heavy angst-filled chapter, just for your enjoyment. It's also rather long, sort of making up for my lack of updates recently – did I mention I recently moved, then lost my mobile internet USB modem thingy? Well I found it (yay…obviously or else I wouldn't be updating this) so I can apologize for the delay (**Dramatically, with tears** "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I haven't updated in a while, I promise I'll never do it again.")_

_Well, now that I've done that, I hope you shall all enjoy this chapter._

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Seventeen: Heavy Burden**

She didn't remember leaving the water. She didn't remember falling with a thud onto the deck, him landing on top of her. She didn't remember their shuffle into the cabin, nor the fact that he mostly carried her. She didn't remember hitting her head against the door of the bedroom. She only remembered what happened within.

It was extraordinary how the most basic and natural of inter-human actions could inspire such feelings inside her. Never in her life had she felt true electricity flowing between two bodies; she had always thought it to be fantasy. Never had she felt her body control her mind; never had she allowed it. Never had she felt so calm at feeling another body on top of hers, nor so calm in love's aftermath.

As Bruce rolled off her and stared at the ceiling, she knew that he felt it too. Neither of them could say anything. Everything that they needed to say to each other they already had.

However, despite all the good feelings that were rife between them as can only be possible after strenuous love-making, Rachel could not forget the warning Alfred had given her. Glancing out the window to the now dark surroundings, her sense of foreboding only increased.

How do you tell the person that you have just made exhaustive love to that you were going to marry someone else? Feeling his arms snake around her waist, followed shortly after by his lips at the back of her neck quickly erased her negative thoughts from her mind and assisted in sending her quickly to sleep.

_-xXx-_

Rachel awoke to a fitful sleep early the next morning. During the night, she and Bruce had separated slightly; only his hand was touching her side. Slowly, she slipped from the bed and his touch, instantly missing it. Taking the sheet with her, which wasn't that difficult to do given it had fallen on the floor, she wrapped herself tightly and slipped away, moving to the window.

The sun had barely risen. The sky was a mix of soft pinks, oranges and the palest of blues in a blanket of color and light that still managed to keep the surrounding coastline black, with the faintest touch of green. It was truly beautiful.

As she stared at the vision before her, her mind whizzed to the dream and images that had kept her sleep uneasy. Harvey, coming back from the dead in his pristine form had reminded her of her decision to marry him. Then, in a rage, Bruce had flown at her throwing punches at her and telling her how much she had just destroyed him. Harvey, who saw what she and Bruce had done before she fell asleep turned away from her and told her she was a whore.

Rachel's eyes snapped open at that memory, gazing out at the slowly brightening sky. She had to tell Bruce. She was just going to do it, no questions, no expectations or assumptions of his reaction; she was just going to tell him. Force him to hear.

As she nodded her head in determination, she heard Bruce sigh behind her. Turning around, Bruce had shifted his position; he was now on his back, with his head facing away from her, still soundly sleeping. She smiled as she looked at him, and felt her body begin to ache as she took in his body.

One of the few blankets that hadn't fallen off the bed was all that covered him from his hips down. It was a sight any woman would kill for. A god in human form. Each muscle was chiseled to perfection, his skin a perfect tan – although she had no idea how given he was always clothed.

She wondered, as she ate him visually, how it was possible she had been able to resist him for so long; how she had ever been able to turn him down; how she could ever choose someone else. It was this thought that brought her back to her predicament.

Since she had realized the depths of her feelings for both men she had never actually thought properly about why it was that they had never come together earlier. Since he had returned from his 7-year absence it was a different matter, but what had kept them separate before that? They were almost always together on weekends when they were teenagers, and many of her fellow schoolgirls thought she was destined to become the next Mrs. Wayne.

She had been in love with him then, and was pretty sure he had been too, so why hadn't they? Even with the grief he always felt back then for his parents deaths, he had had relationships. Cindy what's-her-name had been the fist girl she had ever heard him refer too as a Girlfriend, despite the relationship only lasting a few months. And then there was the Madonna wannabe, Eva Carr, or was it Cameron? Rachel couldn't remember. It was too long ago.

So yes, there had been a couple of girls, and the odd guy in the way. Rachel would never forget John Lee. The most romantic guy she had ever met, pity he turned out to be gay. But what else? Their feelings?

Had they looked at each other more as brother and sister? Surely not. She knew she never had. But had he? She had no idea.

Rachel sighed herself and refocused on the view out the window. From looking outside, she looked back to Bruce. He looked so peaceful; so handsome. She bit her lip; this was going to be one of the hardest things she had ever said to him.

She remembered back to the time she discovered the truth about him, how she had paced about her apartment for hours wondering how she was going to be able to talk to him, wondering what she could say to him; wondering how they could complete that fantasy she had held for years, before realizing that so long as Batman existed, they couldn't.

How was it possible for a 'superhero' to live a normal life including a girlfriend? She had seen all the _Spiderman_ movies. She had seen how his enemies had targeted Mary-Jane to attack Spiderman. She didn't want to be that constant 'damsel-in-distress'.

But then, of course, the Joker appeared, and he saw the connection between Batman and her. He had attacked it, leaving Harvey to think it had been his fault she had 'died'. Without even being the girlfriend she was being treated in the way that she hadn't wanted to be; she was the damsel.

She had realized, as she was on her way to Bruce's penthouse, that she would always be the damsel. Bruce would never stop caring; than connection they had would always be there, always making her a target.

She pulled the sheet tighter around her body as she felt a chill creep over that was related only to her thoughts.

She didn't think she could handle telling him the truth and have him turn on her. These past few months had been so tormenting. She had lost her freedom, lost Harvey. She had discovered the truth of Harvey's decisions in the wake of her 'death'. She had watched Bruce begin to falter as Batman began to become a greater enemy to the people of Gotham. It was odd, how the torment of these few months had reminded her of one thing. Bruce.

He was the only thing, the only person that had ever been truly stable in her life; despite their relationship being complicated, he had always been there for her as a friend, no matter how many of her dates with Harvey he attempted to jeopardize to remind her of her promise.

Even before Batman, he had always been one of her greatest friends, always there for her – when she completed her studies at Law School with honors he had been the first to offer his congratulations after her mom. She couldn't even remember seeing any bitterness on his face when he hugged her tightly and kissed her cheek; he had been genuinely happy for her, and didn't care that he was living a life of idleness, and bound for doing nothing to honor his family's legacy, whilst she was off doing something.

It was also odd how she had spent those 7 years thinking, if he wasn't dead, how he must be continuing that idle life. And then she found out the truth and everything she knew about him was suddenly challenged. But despite that, a part of her knew, that morning amongst the rubble of Wayne Manor, that if she did ignore Batman's mask and complete that fantasy she had always had of them together, he would put her first. But it was that other part, that pessimistic part of her mind which told her he would choose Gotham. And it was the part that she listened too.

And now she wondered how she had been stupid enough to think Batman was the force that could separate them. Spending the previous evening, the previous afternoon, in his arms, feeling him cover her, fill her, capture her, she couldn't believe _she _had been foolish enough to think that she could be happy with anyone else.

He was her oldest friend, and the only thing she had ever promised him, she had broken for her own selfishness. But was it selfish, her wanting to be happy for the rest of her life with someone who made her happy? Was she selfish choosing Harvey over him? Was she selfish in promising Bruce something she herself had constantly held doubts over? She was so dreadfully confused; it was beginning to bring tears to her eyes.

"Rachel?" His groggy, sleep filled voice sounded behind her, and she realized she had woken him up.

She wiped her eyes, not wanting him to see her tears.

"Are you okay?" She turned to see him sitting up in bed, rubbing his eyes.

"I'm fine." She sniffed as she said it.

She saw him look at her; he'd always been able to read her easily. "Come on." He stood up and walked around the bed towards her, not bothering to hide himself.

"You have no shame." She rolled her eyes as he joined her, bringing his arms to her waist.

He shrugged, smirking. "What's wrong?" His face was close to her as he spoke, his fingers coming up to her face, pushing stray strands away from her skin.

She was unable to look at him, but knew this was the time. It wasn't perfect, but she didn't feel like there was ever going to be a time that was going to be perfect. "I was going to marry him."

_-xXx-_

_We're finally there, the long awaited conversation!_

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	18. Chapter 18

_Okay, so it's only been a few days, but given this was a chapter that was surprisingly not that difficult to write (mainly because it was the second chapter of this story that I ever wrote), I figured I may as well post it. Also, I'd like to get this story finished before I go back to University, and I'd like to spend time working on my other stories, such as my other _Batman Begins/Dark Knight _story 'the Legend of Batman', plus I have an _Underworld _story that I started a year ago that I still need to finish but I haven't done anything with it in months other than re-write a sentence, so I need to get on with that, and oh shit I'm rambling, so I'm shutting up now and letting you read the good stuff._

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Eighteen: Revealing a Broken Promise**

Her voice was quiet and she wasn't sure whether he had heard her, but when she looked up to him, he had pulled away, and his eyes didn't show the warmth they had when he had been looking at her. She started to panic. He was upset; he was disheartened, maybe even broken-hearted. She could feel her heart beginning to beat heavily, felt a lead weight fill her chest. She had to continue; she had to explain herself properly.

"At the fundraiser, he asked me to marry him." She attempted to speak carefully; forced herself to keep her breathing and voice calm. "I couldn't answer him; I didn't know how to answer him." She looked up at him sharply, not realizing that she had looked away. She had to see him. "Yes I loved him, but I loved you too."

Bruce turned away and slowly walked to the bed, sitting down and searching the floor for his boxers. "Then the Joker labeled me as a target so I came to you, and I was reminded just how much I loved you." She raised her voice so that he would hear her.

It didn't help that she could feel tears forming as she remembered; as she put into words properly how she felt about him; how she felt about Harvey. "But I was afraid. You were going to turn yourself in the following day; I was afraid that if I chose you, I'd never be with you, but if I chose Harvey, I'd be happy. But I would always carry regrets."

Bruce looked up at her as he pulled on a pair of track pants, and stayed their, almost frozen. After she told him about her conflict, he looked away, straight ahead. He was looking towards the far wall, but at the same time, he wasn't looking at anything at all.

"But then I watched as you let Harvey take the fall for you, and I was furious at how selfish you were being! My mind told me that to choose you would be a mistake." She turned away from him and strode to the suitcase. Rummaging through it she found what she was looking for: the letter. "So I wrote this."

Turning back to him, she saw him looking at her quizzically. Holding the white envelope high in her hand, she knew she had caught his interest. Lowering her hand a little, she walked towards him, sitting down on the bed beside him and handing him the letter.

"What's this?" He asked taking it from her.

Still clutching the sheet around her shoulders she watched as his fingers turned the paper. "It's a letter I wrote to you." She whispered.

She watched him as he unfolded the paper, as his eyes swam over the words, as they squinted towards the end. She waited for him to speak as he lowered the paper, and with each moment she became even more nervous.

"You weren't going to wait." He spoke finally, just as she felt certain that he hated her.

"No." She felt a tear drop down her cheek. "How could I?" She suddenly felt angry. "I watched as you allowed Harvey to take the fall for you. I watched as you proved this hateful thought in my mind that you would never be able to let go of Batman. And I couldn't stand that. I couldn't stand being so in love with you thinking that you loved someone else more."

"You thought I couldn't live without Batman; I see that." He held up the letter, interrupting her and standing up at the same time. "I just want to know what changed your mind; why you're here now." He walked away from the bed, and turned to face her once he reached the far wall.

Rachel sighed, shifting her position on the bed and suddenly finding the rug between them to be fascinating. But she also did it because she was thinking. To be honest, she had never really thought about why it was that she had insisted on coming to him after Gordon rescued her. Initially she said it was because he could protect her in a way no one, not even the Witness Protection program could. But now?

Eventually, however, she realized she had to speak. "When I told you, that day at the Palace, that I would wait for you, I told you because I didn't want to be a tool used to get to you. I wanted the simple life and Harvey was offering me that." She paused. Everything that she had said so far had been words carefully chosen – at least most of them – but this time she had to be even more so.

"But when I was sitting on that roof," she eventually continued, "I realized I was being used as a tool to get at Harvey, and that even if we both survived, I was back in that situation I had been with you." She looked up at him, expecting him to be looking at the rug as well, but instead he was staring at her.

"But then Gordon saved me, and it felt odd. You were supposed to save me, but you didn't." At these words his head fell forward. "Then Gordon told me, that the Joker wasn't using me to get at Harvey, he was using me to get at you."

"But the Joker did use you to get at Harvey. Thinking you were dead was what transformed him." Bruce countered, again interrupting.

"I know that now," she responded heatedly, "then I didn't. All I knew was that no matter what I did in separating us, I would always be a target, no matter who I chose." She paused and looked at him; he wasn't looking at her, just staring at the floor.

She could see, from the angle of his jaw, the rigidness of his cheek, that he didn't particularly like what she was telling him. Not that she was surprised. Over a period of time that had begun with the early light of dawn, and had come to the sun shining brightly just above the horizon, she had told Bruce information that she had been holding off on for months. She had been through it time and time again, 'how do you tell the person you love that you were going to marry someone else because you thought that they were selfish?' Well now she was telling him, but she refused to give up hope. Telling him was like her confessing.

She was cleansing herself of her past actions, be they improper or wonderful. She was cleansing her soul and her spirit, much in the same way women would when they were preparing to marry someone. Only difference was, was that she was confessing not to a priest, but to the man.

"Difference is," she realized, she had been quiet for too long; and also, that they were staring at each other. When she spoke, she broke their eye contact and looked towards the open window. "The difference is, being with you, knowing that I will always be a target, I feel safer than I ever had." She continued, her attention returning to his form.

At these words he looked up at her, his eyes soft again. "You still haven't told me what changed your mind." Bruce spoke, standing up from his lean against the wall and rejoining her on the bed. "I doubt you would be here, in your current circumstances, without your opinion of me changing." A small smirk played on his lips for a moment as he indicated the sheet that she was wrapped in.

She sighed and feeling a blush creep into her cheeks, looked away to the cupboard, thinking. "When Gordon saved me;" she started, possibly even slower than anything she had said all morning; "He appeared surprised momentarily when he saw me. Before we left the warehouse, he attempted to pressure me into going into Witness Protection. He told me about your reaction when you found out I was in danger; told me how you disappeared coming after me. I realized then that Alfred was right."

Bruce looked at her confused. "Alfred?"

"Before I left, I gave Alfred that letter to pass onto you. I asked him why you were letting Harvey take the fall. He told me it was because you both realized that Batman was someone more than a human being in a mask; he was something that people believed in. I didn't believe him; all I knew was that you were a selfish bastard allowing a good man to take the fall." Bruce smiled at her.

"But he was right." She went on. "If _you _had been the man inside that van, you would be dead, and I would never have had the chance to realize how wrong I had been." She stared at him with open eyes, hoping that he had accepted her story and the reasons behind it.

_-xXx-_

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	19. Chapter 19

_Hello all, sorry about the delay. Been working a heap to actually pay rent (on time) and getting into the swing of living away from home. _

_Any ways, I think this is the last chapter (yay/boo!). I say 'I think' because I'm as yet unsure whether or not I will write an epilogue, which I probably will, and shall post one day. But for now, thank you all for reading my story, enjoying my story, reviewing, favoriting and alerting. It truly means a lot and has helped keep me going._

_I also have one little apology to make. I really, and I mean _really _wanted to get this chapter up as soon as I could, which has also meant I only wrote this chapter in about an hour with not a lot of major editing. But given I'm now at the end of this story, I think I can be forgiven._

_-xXx-_

**Chapter Nineteen: Understanding**

Rachel gathered her clothes from the dressers. Three days away from Gotham had been a good idea at the time. She would feel relaxed and calm – not to mention a few days away from smog would be fantastic for her lungs. The only problem was she felt anything but relaxed and calm, and that was all because of Bruce.

Since coming clean about her intentions, Bruce had hardly uttered a word to her. It was proving to be difficult. Every night he would take his dinner and eat up on deck and wouldn't come back until he was sure she was asleep. During the day he buried himself inside books, only speaking to her when it suited him.

It was like he didn't give a damn how much she was hurting. She had come to the realization that she was desperately in love with him, and having him ignore her was driving her to breaking point, which was odd given she thought she already thought she knew what that point was. But instead, she was now packing up all her things to return to Gotham with invisible tears streaming down her cheeks.

To make it worse, the people who she would have spoken to in the past, her friends, her mother, Alfred, she was unable to contact.

"_No phone coverage where we're going." _ Bruce had told her when she'd asked why he didn't have his cell. Who would have thought there were still areas in the world where cell coverage was unattainable in this day and age, Rachel had thought to herself.

Now it was proving to be one of the worst things about this trip. Coupling with the humiliation of expecting him to react favorably to her 'cleansing', she had half a mind wishing that they had never come on this damn trip in the first place. Not that it hadn't been good for the first day, but ever since then it had been horrible.

"You ready?" Rachel looked up at Bruce's voice from the doorway to the cabin to see him fully dressed in the rich-man-sailing outfit.

"Yeah, almost." Rachel responded, wiping her eyes and turning away from him.

"No you're not. You're not even dressed yet." He stated. She could hear him walking into the room.

Rachel sighed, staring at the opposite wall so he wouldn't see her face. "I'm a woman. We might take forever to get ready, but we also know how to be ready amazingly quickly when called on." She spoke heatedly, walking into the bathroom.

"Hey, what's with the attitude?" Bruce's voice asked, followed by the crumpling of sheets; he'd sat down on the bed.

Rachel fought the urge to laugh, scream and shout. _What's with the attitude?_ Well where did she begin? She told him she was going to marry someone else, and that she had made the decision impulsively without thinking things out properly, and was now sorry for that, that she was in love with him, and he had responded by ignoring her for two days.

"I know I've been a right ass for the past two days, but how did you expect me to react with what you told me?" He asked.

Rachel froze and looked up at the mirror, staring at her reflection. He had a point. She had dropped a bomb on him and expected him to react like the Japanese after Hiroshima. Of course, she was being foolish hoping everything would be all roses and daisies.

Now she thought about it, she was equally at fault. She had lied to him for months about Harvey. She had lied to herself for months, but that wasn't the point. Bruce should have known, immediately, that she had intended to marry Harvey. She should have told him that night in the penthouse that he had asked her, that she was planning to say yes, but instead she said nothing and he kissed her, and for five minutes she had been his. But then he was gone and he did nothing to contradict Harvey and she hated him. But of course then the Joker had thought it would be entertaining to tie her to a warehouse roof surrounded by gas barrels.

"Rachel?" Rachel looked up to see Bruce standing in the doorway. "What did you think, truly, would happen when you told me you wanted to marry Harvey?" He asked.

"I don't know." She whispered after a pause. "I can't say I thought everything would be rosy because I never did. If anything, I expected you to react worse than you actually have." She explained. "I hoped you wouldn't, of course." She whispered, looking back to the bathroom vanity, gathering all her possessions and stuffing them in a bag.

Bruce nodded and left her to continue packing up the bathroom. "Did I mention it didn't surprise me?" His voice piqued her interest. She stepped out of the bathroom and looked at him, back on the bed, staring at her feet. "You're 30, you always wanted a family, Harvey was my salvation but you were in love with him, I could see that. Plus, who knew when I would be _truly _free of Batman?" He spoke simply, slowly looking up until he was staring her in the eyes.

Rachel sighed, and walked back into the bathroom. Picking up the now full toiletry bag she returned to the bedroom, her voice suddenly becoming lost.

"Now is your turn to say something?" Bruce spoke.

Rachel smiled at him after placing the bag in her suitcase. "I don't know what to say."

"I mean, obviously I hoped that you would hold yourself to your, um, 'vow', but as time went on, I started thinking that that wasn't going to happen. Time changes people." He shrugged.

Rachel was watching him as he spoke, closing the suitcase she sat down on the bed beside him. "I meant what I said, that I would wait for you." She spoke quietly, looking to his knee. "I just needed someone to remind me of it."

"How many times?" He asked quietly? "I mean I was thoroughly enjoying every opportunity I got to ruin or sabotage your dates. Stealing the ballerina's, that was fun, especially when I dumped them on Alfred when I went to Hong Kong." He smiled at the memory.

"It wasn't a case of reminding me on many occasions; it was about reminding me at the _right _time." She replied, ignoring his comment about date sabotaging, but finding his hand and holding it.

Bruce looked at their interlocked hands for a moment then up to her face. With his free hand he brushed her hair away. "Timing is everything." He said quietly.

Rachel responded with another smile. "So what do we do now?" She asked, standing and gathering the laid out clothes from the bed.

"Well first we head back to Gotham." Bruce answered as she stepped into the bathroom to change. "Then we enjoy each other privately before the correct time comes for us to enjoy each other publicly."

Rachel poked her head out the door and made a face at him. "Do you need to rephrase that statement?" She asked.

Bruce thought about it for a moment, before walking into the bathroom to find her in only a pair of jeans and a bra. "Nope." He said, pulling her close and kissing her.

_-xXx-_

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	20. Chapter 20

_I told you an Epilogue was coming…I've just been really lazy and only just got round to finishing it! Once again a big thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited and alerted this story, and an especially big thank you for sticking around and enjoying my story._

_-xXx-_

**Epilogue**

'_He's off the market, Girls'_

'_Bruce Wayne officially taken'_

'_Wedding of the Century'_

'_Mrs. Wayne to be everyday lawyer'_

These were only some of the headlines that graced the front pages of every single newspaper, magazine, news website, radio and television news broadcast, not to mention being the talking point of talk-back radio, gossip radio, and every single woman's mind across Gotham on the morning of November 23rd 2008. It was a topic that had everyone in Gotham excited, but only two people laughing.

For Bruce Wayne and Rachel Dawes, the story that was apparently "exclusive" and was _apparently _less than a day old, had actually started three months earlier, from bended knee and hot-air balloon high above the earth. Neither could remember properly where it had been, only that Rachel had been exhaustively tired having been woken up at five in the morning, and was still yawning when suddenly something was glittering and sparkling from the corner of her eye.

The rest was, well, history. Her eyes went wide as she realized what it was, and meant that she completely missed everything that it was he said that was good and loving about her. She missed those elusive words, "marry me", and instead was a possibly overbearing "yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes," woman whilst throwing herself at him.

They had then returned to Gotham, a huge, sparkling, glittering rock on her third finger, and no-one asked anything about it. Not even the gossip magazines which had been excited about nothing more than her choice in clothes and career since the revelation that she was alive and they were together, not even they asked anything about the horde of diamonds that made her hand dance and dazzle. A horde of diamonds which she did very little to conceal.

It didn't matter that the thing weighed a ton; she was going to wear it until the day she died. Any way it would be a good workout for her arm. Who needed weights or a gym when you had a rock (or rocks) that totaled the size of Texas on one finger?

It was probably because she was going to marry the best and most amazing – not to mention the closest thing to a god she had ever seen. Yeah, that was probably why the weight of, how many diamonds was it again, was not affecting her that much.

To be honest, Rachel found it quite surprising that nothing had been revealed earlier. She and Bruce, after coming to an agreement about their relationship, had spent another six months in hiding. It took that long for the Joker's trial to finish, especially when he ignored his lawyer's advice to take an insanity plea, a decision which led to him being tried like a normal human being before finally being acquitted on all charges and given the death penalty.

Rachel, although she had never found any ease with capitalist punishment, was immensely relieved when word came out. Gordon's visit to the penthouse on the morning of the 17th June 2007 had been one of the best days of her life. She was finally able to walk outside, along the street, through the park; she was free.

Yes there where still moments when she would hear a twig break behind her and feel her body temperature drop, but those moments were always followed with _Bruce is Batman. I'm always safe_. The good thing about all those moments was that as time went by they became fewer and far between.

But despite the occasional moment of sheer panic that she was about to be blown to smithereens or a large and attractive hole was about to appear in her body somewhere, Rachel Dawes was giddily happy, excited and over the moon – a position every bride-to-be felt when she new she was marrying 'the one'.

The only thing that could in any way dampen her mood was the insane amount of photographers and journalists that adorned her wherever she went. It made her job difficult, not to mention her days incredibly tiring.

The worst part of it was that they just never left. She would walk into her office building in the morning with a group of photographers following her with flashing bulbs that sometimes made her feel like a zoos penguin, and then in the evening, when she left they would still be there! It was ridiculous. Plus it made her days annoying when she couldn't leave for an hour over lunch – except for when she was going to meet with Bruce.

In that case, there would be photographers following her from the moment she exited her office building, to the cab and then from the cab, to the restaurant where she was meeting Bruce. How could anyone put up with this level of attention? No wonder all celebrities were stick figures.

Nevertheless, after dodging questions and ducking her head with a style and grace that Lindsay and Britney were yet to learn – a style that potential princesses managed to attain with advanced simplicity – she still managed to enter the restaurant and immediately found him.

"Sorry I'm late." She smiled as she met a standing Bruce, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "Greg is rightly treating me like a normal lawyer and refused to let me out of the office until I finished preparing a report of 'international' significance for the trial." She sighed, sitting down and immediately allowing her shoulders to hunch, allowing all stiffness to flow freely.

Bruce merely smiled at her, feeling a light laugh coming. "Well, while you were doing a good morning's quality work, I spent the entire morning at the hospital site handing out a rather large cheque." His voice sparkled with sarcasm and irony.

"Do you think we'll ever make it?" Rachel asked, over dramatically, falling back in her chair and raising her hand to her forehead. "You, a bored philanthropic billionaire and me a hardworking criminal lawyer?" She continued, placing the back of her hand to her forehead.

Bruce chuckled. "I don't know. Maybe I should do the old-fashioned, anti-feminist thing of forcing you to quit your job and chain you to the kitchen sink."

Rachel grinned. "Maybe you should." She leaned in close to him so that the people at the next table couldn't hear them. "But then you wouldn't be able to enjoy that thing I do."

"That's what mistresses are for." Bruce responded without missing a beat. "Although that thing shall be missed." He grinned evilly.

Rachel smirked at his statement, ignoring the mistress jibe. Both then fell into a comfortable silence, which ended when the waiter approached them, taking their order which consisted of the daily special salad for him, and the roast steak for her.

"Have I mentioned how ridiculous it is the amount you eat?" He asked as the waiter walked away.

"No I don't think it has ever come up, mister 'I'm-so-hungry-I-could-eat-a-whale-but-instead-I'll-have-the-salad.'" She grinned.

It was this banter, this comfort, this type of interaction that always made the photographers outside a distant dim memory. For just under an hour, Rachel would forget that she was the fiancée of the richest man in Gotham, and that she was just a normal girl, engaged to a normal guy.

Of course she knew that was not true. There was no way Bruce would _ever _be a 'normal' guy, there was far too much too him, and for that reason, a 'normal' girl would never be appropriate.

Later that afternoon, as she sat in her office groaning about the speed of the internet, and finding herself wondering at how she never missed the paperwork during her year-long absence from the world, she found herself – as was un-surprisingly usual – getting lost in her engagement ring.

It was odd, how something that in the long run was incredibly trivial – it was after all just a ring – was also the item that was in some ways her savior. For a year, plus a bit extra, Rachel had found herself constantly fearing what was around the corner, and what was behind her.

Almost getting blown up does strange things for your psyche.

Being saved, having to watch a building you were trapped in explode, spending a year in a prison – no matter how luxurious – and yet still be free, it had given her a wound she never thought would repair. And then, as if by magic, she looked into the hands of her lover and saw the most beautiful thing she had ever seen and knew that she no longer had anything to fear.

Rachel was no longer a broken, damaged or fragile woman. She was strong, resilient and determined that her life and the one that she was creating would forever be safe, pure, and enduring.

_**The End**_

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